The Blossom of Lost Desire
by Rukuya
Summary: After loosing sight of Byakuya beneath a wave of deadly cherry blossoms, Rukia's heart pulls her into a search for her brother, and the only man she can't live without. Zanpakutou Filler Arc Spoilers!
1. Chapter 1

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

**Timeline: **Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

**Main Pairing(s):** Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter One~**

Voices.

That's what she heard as she slowly started to drift out of darkness and into consciousness. She slowly opened her eyes, but quickly shut them again, the lights above blinding her. She tried sitting up, her muscles were sore all over, but she sat up despite the pain. She rubbed her eyes and slowly opened them again, letting them adjust to the light.

She looked around her in a confused haze. She saw people that were injured and some others running around assisting the injured ones. Questions started to come to her, _'Where am I?'_..._'What happened?'_..._'Why am I here?'_

She then noticed a woman with long black hair, braided at the front. The woman turned around and looked surprised when she saw that she was awake.

"Kuchiki Rukia, it's good to see you've woken up." The woman said with a friendly smile as she approached her.

Rukia then recognized the woman. It was Retsu Unohana, the captain of the Fourth Division. Rukia looked down to see she was dressed in white robes that some of the patients wore in the Fourth Division. She looked around her again and realized that's exactly where she was, in the Fourth Division.

"Unohana-Taicho, what happened?" Rukia asked as Unohana sat next to her bed.

"You passed out after your battle against your zanpakutou, Sode no Shirayuki. You and Kurosaki Ichigo had been brought here by Shihōin Yoruichi after she had finished her business with the Covert Ops. An hour or so after you two were brought here Kurosaki-san regained consciousness and he's now outside talking with Ukitake-Taicho, Kyoraku-Taicho, and Nanao-Fukutaicho outside in the gardens. You should also be well enough to go out and talk with them as well, if you'd like." Unohana explained, smiling when she was done talking.

Rukia gives a small nod, before removing the covers off of her lap and stepping out of bed to follow Unohana into the gardens.

–

"Oh, it's good to see you've woken up." The commander of the Thirteenth Division, Jūshirō Ukitake, said as Rukia and Unohana appeared.

"Yeah, it's good to see you're okay." Ichigo stated with a smile.

Rukia gave them a small smile before sitting down near Ukitake and Unohana.

"So, Rukia. If you don't mind me asking...Exactly what all happened?" Ukitake asked before taking a sip of tea from his cup.

Rukia's expression saddened. "No, I don't mind." She gave a sigh before she continued. "After leaving Soukyoku Hill, Renji and I ran into two of the zanpakutou spirits and fought against them. Right when one of them was about to kill me, Nii-sama stopped him by using Kidō. Then that man, Muramasa appeared with Senbonzakura...Nii-sama told us to run, before he attacked Senbonzakura. Senbonzakura used his shikai though, and that was the last I saw of Nii-sama, he just disappeared...Then Sode no Shirayuki appeared and attacked me and Renji. I was able to open a senkaimon and get to The World Of The Living, after I regained consciousness in Urahara Kisuke's shop I explained to them what had happened. Later that night though, I came back here to Soul Society. I wanted to see if Nii-sama had returned, but he hadn't, so I left the Sixth Division Headquarters and while I was walking I saw Sode no Shirayuki attacking other shinigami. We engaged in battle, but after the fight ever thing else is a blur to me." Rukia then looked at Ukitake and Unohana. "Has there been any news, any kind at all, to Nii-sama's whereabouts?" She asked worriedly.

Ukitake frowns. "I'm sorry, but there hasn't." Rukia's head dropped as her sad gaze focused on the floor. "Don't worry though, I'm sure he's just fine. He'll be back in no time!" Ukitake added in, trying to brighten Rukia's saddened mood.

"Yeah Rukia, like I said before...Something like that wouldn't kill him, he's strong, and you know that probably better than anyone." Ichigo said reassuringly.

"Kuchiki-san, I can't tell you not to be worried, but you should rest so you won't be too weak or exhausted when he returns."

Rukia glanced up at them sadly before she lowered her gaze to the ground again. She gave a small nod before standing and walking back inside, with her head still lowered in sadness.

–

_Rukia lay on the roof of one of the many buildings in the Seireitei watching helplessly as Gonryomaru was about to administer the final blow, that was meant to take her life._

"_Bakudō sixty-one, Rikujōkōrō." _

_Rukia's eyes widened when she heard that voice. She turned her head to see Byakuya standing on the roof of another building. _

"_Nii-sama?"_

"_Rukia!" She heard Renji call, before he landed behind her as she stood up. "Are you okay!?" Renji then noticed Byakuya. "Taicho?"_

"_Don't let your guard down." Byakuya ordered in his usual monotone voice._

"_I see. I suppose I should have expected as much from a captain." Muramasa stated as he and a man that was dressed like a samurai appeared on another nearby building. Murmasa continued, "After all, you're strong enough to have once enslaved a powerful Zanpakutou." _

_The masked samurai then moved in front of Muramasa, a sword appearing in his hand. The sword was exactly like Byakuya's. The hilt, the guard, an exact match._

"_Nii-sama!" Rukia called, turning around to look at Byakuya again._

"_My name is Senbonzakura." Stated the masked man as he pointed his sword at Byakuya. _

_Byakuya's eyes shifted to Rukia and Renji. "Go."_

"_But-" Rukia tried to respond but Byakuya cut her off as he drew his sword._

"_I won't repeat myself." He said before moving to attack Senbonzakura._

_Their blades clashed together numerous times as they fought in mid air. Senbonzakura landed on the roof of a building, blocking another one of Byakuya's attacks. _

"_You should know better than anyone how foolish it is to fight my thousand blades with a single katana." Senbonzakura stated before scattering his own blade into it's shikai state. Byakuya's eyes widened as Senbonzakura's sword scattered into a thousand cherry blossom-like blades before him. He used shun-po to flee from Senbonzakura's attack. _

"_You're soft!" Senbonzakura yelled as he controled the blades to follow the fleeing Byakuya._

_Rukia and Renji watched with widened eyes, unable to help as they saw the thousands of blades as they closed in on Byakuya as he jumped for another nearby building._

"_It's futile!" Senbonzakura said to Byakuya as Byakuya slowly started to disappear from view as the mass of blades swallowed him up, destroying many buildings in the process._

"_Nii-sama!" Rukia shouted worriedly as Byakuya disappeared from view. "NII-SAMA!" She called once more as the blades crashed down and destroyed any building in their way._

–

Rukia suddenly awoke from her nightmare in a cold sweat, grasping the front of her robes as she gasped for air.

Moments pass until Rukia is able to calm herself. She turns her head to look out a nearby window, staring up at the night sky. Rukia frowns sadly as the memory of Byakuya disappearing from her sight by Senbonzakura's attack and the debris of the falling buildings. Her expression then changed to something that had hints of annoyance as she remembered everyone's constant reassurances. Her comrades telling her that Byakuya will be fine and he'll be back soon. He'll return safe and sound. She was sick of it. Tired of hearing their reassurances. They didn't know if he was okay...or not, the thought of him lying somewhere injured made her cringe. She wanted to know and find out for herself if Byakuya was okay. She wanted to know for a fact, and she knew if she just sat around here in the Fourth Division it would be a long time before she possibly ever found out. She also knew that if he were hurt, sitting around would just be worse. Someone needed to go look for him and Rukia knew that she was probably the only one who would since everyone was just so sure he'd miraculously come back safe and unharmed.

Rukia looked around her. Seeing all the other injured shinigami asleep in their beds. The fourth division members, including the captain and lieutenant, were all asleep as well. Resting their powers so they wouldn't be too exhausted for when they were supposed to heal the injured.

Quietly, Rukia crawled out of bed and quickly, but silently went into another room and changed into her shihakusho. She looked down at her right leg, which was bandaged up. It was one of the injuries she had gotten from her battle against Sode no Shirayuki. Rukia then grabbed her now powerless katana and placed it securely on her hip. She quietly made her way outside and looked up at the stars with a determined expression before using shun po, disappearing into the night.

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**There's Chapter One Of My New Fanfic. I Actually Have Up To Chapter 6 Written Up. I'm Going To Try To Update Every Weekend If Possible, Sorry The First Chapter's Short. They Get Longer. I Promise.**

**And Thank You To EVERYONE Who Helped Me Figure Out Titles And Ideas For This Fic! I Couldn't Of Done It Without You!  
**

**For Those That Read My Other Fanfic In Progress, _"Baby Daddy"_, Don't Worry! I Haven't Quit On It. I'm Still Working On It. Writer's Block Is Just Killing Me Right Now. Though I WILL Finish It. I Promise. **

**Remember To Read And Review Everyone!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	2. Chapter 2

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Two~**

_'Let's see, the injured from the Ninth Division are stabilized and are making a steady recovery.'_ Kotetsu Isane, lieutenant of the 4th division scrolled down her clipboard._ 'The same goes for the injured shinigami and captain of the Seventh Division.'_ She read silently as she walked through her patient's rooms; checking off their names as she went along.

"Now, all that's left is Kuchiki-san." She said aloud as she walked over to where Rukia's bed was located. "Kuchiki-san, how are you fee-" Isane gasped when she looked up. She was expecting Rukia to be sitting in bed waiting on someone to come and check her injuries, but she wasn't. Rukia was gone. The covers of her bed were unmade and pushed back as if Rukia had left of her own accord. Isane calmed herself as much as she could before she quickly went to search for Rukia to see if she was somewhere in the building.

–

"Going up against this strange man won't be easy." Unohana said with a sigh.

"Yes. Especially since we don't know the full extent of his powers." Ukitake stated with a serious tone.

Shunsui nodded. "Yeah, without the power of our zanpakutous this battle will be difficult."

Unohana Retsu, Ukitake Jūshirō , and Kyōraku Shunsui all sat in the Fourth Divison's main office as they held a small meeting concerning the Zanpakutou Rebellion and how they were going to fight against them and Muramasa.

"Unohana-taicho! Kuchiki-sa-" Isane exclaimed as she ran into the office. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry, Taicho! I hope I didn't interrupt anything too important."

"It's alright, Isane. Now what about Kuchiki-san has you so worried?" Unohana asked, noticing the worry in Isane's eyes.

"Oh, yes. Taicho, when I went to check and see how Kuchiki-san was doing or if she needed anything, but when I went to her bed she was gone! The bed had been left as if she left on her own! Kuchiki-san wasn't anywhere else in the building, I made sure to check before I came here. Her wounds still aren't fully healed yet, and if she's run away there's no telling what could happen."

The three captains' expressions now clearly held worry and shock. Isane looked at Unohana and worriedly asked, "Taicho, do you have any idea where Kuchiki-san may have gone?"

Ukitake sighed before cutting in and answering Isane's question. "There's only one reason that comes to my mind about where she might have gone."

Unohana and Shunsui nodded in agreement, already knowing what Ukitake was thinking. Isane looked at them confusedly before looking back at Ukitake. "I apologize, but...I believe I'm missing something here..."

Unohana got up from behind her desk and made her way over to Isane before answering, "Kuchiki-san has probably gone to look for Kuchiki-taicho, and she probably won't return until she's found him."

Isane's eyes widened, "But Kuchiki-san's wounds haven't fully healed yet! Especially since she was injured even before she fought against her zanpakutou."

"Yes, that is worrying." Ukitake said, frowning.

"Should I send a search team to go find her?"

"It would be no use." Ukitake replied. "Rukia would mask her reiatsu, making her harder to find, and even if she was found she would resist and probably run away again if she were to be brought back."

Isane then looked over to Unohana, who gave an unhappy nod; agreeing with Ukitake.

–

_'There has to be something they overlooked. There just has to be.'_ Rukia thought frantically as she searched through the rubble of the destroyed buildings that had gone down when Senbonzakura had attacked Byakuya. That had been the last Rukia had seen of him. She was searching for any type of clue that might lead her to him. Rukia sadly stared at the rubble for a moment before shaking her head; trying to stop the horrible memories of Byakuya being swallowed up by Senbonzakura's blades, but it wasn't helping. Being here where it had all happened was just making it worse. Rukia wiped some sweat that was forming on her forehead away. Her eyes shining with determination. She wouldn't stop searching. She wouldn't stop until she had found him.

Rukia knew Renji and other members of the Sixth Division had already searched here, but what she also knew was that Renji and the others could have overlooked something. They were mainly looking for Byakuya himself, not small clues. Renji might have been looking for clues, but as a Lieutenant, his mind would also have been on the duties of his division in this mess. Rukia knew Byakuya wouldn't be under all this rubble, it was practically an impossibility. She also knew that there would be no obvious clues that anyone could simply spot without thoroughly looking. Rukia was searching everywhere she could possibly get to. She turned over anything she could lift even if it was extremely heavy to her. She wouldn't stop searching even if she were to be cut up by the sharp rocks she wouldn't stop. Even in her weakened state.

After nearly three hours of searching Rukia had finally found what she came here to find. She carefully picked the small piece of fabric looking material up. It was a piece of Byakuya's scarf. It wasn't really much of a clue to where he might be or if he was alright, but it was important to her nonetheless. She held the small piece of Byakuya's scarf to her chest, closed her eyes, and started to think. If she were Byakuya where would she go after what had happened? Rukia grunted in frustration. She had no ideas, nothing came to her mind at all. She looked ahead with an expression showing nothing but sadness and defeat until her eyes widened in surprise as she saw something else that others would easily miss. She ran over to what she saw to confirm what it was. It was just as she thought. Rukia had spotted small, dried up droplets of blood that seemed to form a trail that started from where she had found the piece of Byakuya's scarf. Just by glancing it wouldn't be seen as a trail. By some fate her tired eyes took in the context of how the blood splatters lay.

Rukia looked back down at the piece of silk in her hand and became aware of something she hadn't noticed before. There was a small blood stain on the bottom edge of the cloth. Rukia's feeling of defeat changed to hope, but she still held worry. The blood meant he was hurt, which she knew he probably would be. She just hoped his injuries weren't too serious. She clutched the piece of his scarf to her chest once more before looking up at the sky that was now pink and orange due to the setting sun. Her determination shining in her eyes.

–

Sode no Shirayuki looked down on Haineko, who was trying to mess with Tobiume's hair, but Tobiume was bothered by Haineko's antics and was covering her head to try to stop her. Muramasa had ordered her to come back here to the Zanpakutou's temporary cave-like hideout. She was sitting on the edge of one of the upper caverns. She wasn't paying too much attention to them though. She closed her eyes and continued to be lost in her thoughts. Thinking of her battle with Rukia and all that had occurred. She still couldn't believe that Rukia had willingly set her free. She hadn't expected Rukia to have ever done something like that and now Sode no Shirayuki was starting to doubt that she really wanted to be set free.

"Your clothes will stain with dirt if you're not careful." Senbonzakura said as he appeared behind her.

Sode no Shirayuki's eyes stay closed as she smirked at his statement. "What do you need?"

"What happened during your fight against Kuchiki Rukia?" He answered in his usual emotionless tone.

Sode no Shirayuki winced slightly at the memory before sliding her eyes open to regard him; her expression thoughtful. "Kuchiki Rukia...offered me freedom."

"What?"

"Kuchiki Rukia, she set me free of her own will. Though please don't let anyone know about this. Muramasa doesn't want that getting around because it may cause some to doubt their actions. I'm only telling you because I know I can trust you."

"You'll soon get over your feelings of doubt. Don't think too much about it from now on."

Sode no Shirayuki turned her head and looked up at Senbonzakura before giving him a small nod and then a smile. "Alright."

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**There's Chapter 2! I Hope You Enjoyed It, I Worked Hard. I Now Have Up To Chapter 7 Written Out And I'm Going To Start On Chapter 8 On Monday. **

**And Thank You For All The Reviews On Chapter 1! I'm Really Happy You All Enjoyed It. I'll Have Chapter 3 Up Next Weekend.**

**And I Know That The Zanpakutou's Probably Aren't Hiding Out In That Cave Anymore, I Wrote This Before Episode 233 So It Was Before It Showed Senbonzakura Looking Out At Soul Society From This Fortress-like Building. That Place Is Going To Be Added In Later Chapters. Sorry This One Is Short As Well, But Like I Said Before...I PROMISE They Get Longer. So It'll Be Worth The Wait Hopefully. :3**

**And BIG Thanks To Hikara-Hime From BA For Helping Me Correct Errors And Such! x3  
**

**Please Remember To Review! It Really Motivates Me To Continue.**

**NO FLAMING!**


	3. Chapter 3

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Three~**

"What do you mean Rukia's gone!?" Ichigo and Renji worriedly asked in unison.

They were in the Fourth Division Gardens speaking with Ukitake, and they were just recently informed of Rukia's disappearance. In fact, they were practically demanding were she was so they could bring her back.

"Calm yourselves." Ukitake commanded, slightly raising his voice, but not quite yelling. Ichigo and Renji immediately went silent. "Now, let me explain."

Renji and Ichigo wait patiently for Ukitake to explain, giving him their full attention.

Ukitake cleared his throat, "Rukia left because her worry over Byakuya was too great. She wasn't allowing herself to just sit and wait for answers concerning his whereabouts or safety, so in the middle of the night she made her escape. We're positive she's gone to search for him, it's the only conclusion we could come up with."

Ichigo and Renji were about to speak, but Ukitake held his hand up, motioning that he wasn't finished yet. So Ichigo and Renji knew to stay silent.

"I've talked this over with Unohana-Taicho, since we both knew both would want to immediately start a search for Rukia, but we've decided that we should just leave Rukia be."

"But she's injured! We can't just sit around and wait knowing that!" Ichigo retorted.

"Yeah, we can't just not do anything." Renji said, agreeing with Ichigo.

Ukitake slowly shook his head, " It wouldn't be any use to try to bring her back even if you were to find her. She'd just run away again. Try to understand how she's been feeling. What would either of you have done if you were in her place and someone that you deeply care about had just suddenly disappeared?"

Ichigo and Renji's eyes turn wide before going narrow again as they looked to the ground and gave a nod.

"I'm glad you both understand." Ukitake said, giving a small smile. "Try not to worry too much, I'm sure Rukia will be fine."

–

Rukia had followed the trail of blood droplets all the way outside of the Seireitei. She was surprised and a little frightened that the trail had lasted so long. She would of thought that Byakuya would of stopped the bleeding after a short while...unless he couldn't. She shuddered at the thought. She didn't want to even think about how bad his injuries might be.

She was now standing in front of the entrance to a forest. It had taken her until sunset to get here and she was exhausted. She took a step forward, but winced in pain when she put pressure on her right leg. The injury that she had received during her battle with Sode no Shirayuki had reopened and was bleeding through her shihakusho.

"Damn." She winced again as she took another step towards the forest. She steadied her balance on a nearby tree. She looked up at the darkening sky with a frown. She knew that the trail wouldn't be followable during the night. Rukia wanted to go on, but she was just too exhausted at the moment and her leg was getting harder to put weight on. She took a breath before slowly making her way into the forest to find a safe place to rest for the night, wincing in pain with every step she took.

She found another tree close by and sat down to rest against it. She let out a deep breath when she touched the ground. Her muscles were aching horribly because of her search. She didn't care though, she was more concerned for Byakuya than herself. Rukia leaned her head back against the tree and shut her eyes, but she didn't go to sleep. She didn't want to let her guard down out here in the wilderness nor did she want to be haunted by her nightmares.

The sky had turned completely dark, with nothing but the moon and stars for light. Rukia wondered how everyone was doing back in the Seireitei, at the Fourth Division. _'I hope they understand why left and know not to come look for me.'_ Her thoughts then drifted to Byakuya. _'And Nii-sama, I wonder if he's okay...I hope so. I hope he's somewhere safe too.'_

Rukia wrapped her arms around herself and brought her uninjured leg up to her chest for a more comfortable place to rest her head. She was shivering slightly since the nights were cold and partly windy.

_'Once morning comes I'll go look around the area for some berries or something for food, and if I can I'll try to find some water as well. Since I was in too much of a rush to grab anything when I left. After that I'll start searching for Nii-sama again.' _Rukia thought as she rested, waiting for daylight to come.

The cicada's could be heard chirping from every direction. Rukia smiled softly when she noticed two small birds flying off into the night sky together. _'Everything's so peaceful here. I hope it's the same after the Zanpakutou Rebellion is over. Hopefully everything will go back to normal. I believe there's a chance it will, I don't know why...But I just do.'_ Rukia thought as she waited patiently for morning to arrive so she could start her search for Byakuya once more.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's chapter three! The next chapter is the first long chapter, and they just start getting longer from there. So expect a long chapter next weekend. I'm sorry I didn't update this chapter last night like I usually do, but for some reason I've been super tired all week and I went to bed pretty early and Fanfic has been having problems uploading my chapter's document so I've been having to wait until the problem is fixed. I'll add in a small preview for the next chapter to make up for it at the end of the author's note.**

**I Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I now have up to half of chapter eight written down in my notebook. I'll hopefully have up to chapter ten written next week.**

**After this fic has ended, even though that's pretty far off...probably....I'm going to start on Baby Daddy again. So it's definitely not over yet. I plan to finish it, I promise! I already have the ending for that story planned out.**

**I'd also like to really thank you all for the wonderful reviews. It makes me really happy to know you're all liking this fanfic. Please, keep them coming. It really inspires me.**

**Don't Forget To Read And Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**

NEXT CHAPTER:

"_You'll never be alone again, I promise."_


	4. Chapter 4

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Four~**

_Rukia sat underneath a sakura tree in the Kuchiki Gardens, it had only been a couple of weeks after returning from Hueco Mundo and it felt good to take it easy and just relax again. She was dressed in her purple kimono, decorated with with lighter purple flowers, and tied with a yellow sash that she had worn after Aizen, Gin, and Tousen had abandoned Soul Society and everyone was recovering from their battles. Rukia stared into the clear blue sky, completely at ease._

"_What are you doing?" A voice from behind her asked._

"_Nii-sama!" Rukia exclaimed, turning her head to face him in surprise before giving a warm smile. _

_Byakuya was dressed in a deep green kimono, free of his usual scarf and kenseikan. He gave a single nod in response before walking around to the opposite side of Rukia to sit down next to her, fixing his gaze to the sky. _

_Rukia glanced up at him before looking to the ground and bringing her knees to her chest. _

"_What do you believe?" She asked suddenly.  
_

_Byakuya looked down at her then. _'She's looking down, it's become an obvious sign of nervousness for her...' _He thought before asking, "What do you mean?"_

"_I-I was just wondering...wh-what Nii-sama believed in...Like, what do you think happen to people that are in Soul Society when they die..." Rukia explained nervously, "Like...if I were to die," Byakuya stiffened at hearing that, but Rukia didn't seem to notice. "what do you think would happen to me?"_

_Byakuya stared down at her, while her gaze was still transfixed on the ground, before looking back up at the sky._

"_Truly, I'm not sure. There are many theories. Some say we're reborn into the human world, some say we become the spirit particles that form the Soul Society, and others, though very few, believe there's another world out there, like a second Soul Society, but more peaceful, where they stay forever and never experiencing death again." He answered in his usual tone._

_Rukia finally glances up at Byakuya, who is still staring up at the clear sky, before shifting her gaze back to the ground. _'I wonder if he was thinking of Hisana, since he went into so much detail on that last one...'

"_Oh..." She responded to him before she went back to being silent._

"_Why did you want to know?"_

"_Because I wondered...if something were to happen to you...or if we die..." _

_Byakuya's eyes widened a fraction, "What do you mean by that?"_

_Rukia lowered her head a little more, "When souls enter this world...They're alone and that they rarely ever join the ones they knew on Earth. They would have to search for them, which mostly ends in failure. I-I'm just...afraid that when we die...I'll l-lose....you, and I would be...alone again." _

_A moment of silence passed between them. Byakuya's slightly surprised expression suddenly turns serious as he stares down at her._

"_I would find you..." He stated, his tone clearly showing his seriousness._

_Rukia looked up at him in surprise, "W-what?" she stuttered. _'Did I just hear him correctly?' _She lowered her head in wonder, before she feels Byakuya's fingers lift her chin so she was making eye contact. Her eyes were still wide with surprise, while his still showed his seriousness._

"_I would find you." He repeats._

"_Y-you really...would?" _

"_I really would." He answers, giving a single nod, "You'll never be alone again, I promise."_

–

Rukia suddenly jerked awake, she looked around her at the surrounding area. Trees, moss, dirt, _'That's right..I'm in the forest.'_ She thought before looking up, "It's morning! I must of drifted off."

She leaned back against the tree and stared straight ahead, looking at nothing in particular, with narrowed eyes. _'That dream...no, not a dream...more like a flashback.' _

"_You'll never be alone again, I promise" _Byakuya's words suddenly went through her thoughts, causing her mood to sadden.

Rukia sighed, covering her face with her hands before quickly withdrawing her head. _'Tears? When did I...Oh, It must of happened while I was still sleeping.'_ She thought, her frown deepening as she wiped her face.

"Must be around 7:30..." Rukia guessed, looking up at the sky once more. Taking a breath, she carefully tried to stand up without putting too much pressure on her injured right leg. "Let's see...Where would be the best place to start looking for food and water?" She asked herself once she was on her feet.

_'Guess I'll go this way.'_ She thought before her stomach growled painfully.

–

Rukia had been searching for almost half an hour, and still couldn't find anything edible or anything that could possibly be okay to drink. _'How can there not even be a stream nearby, or even a small puddle?' _

She was beginning to become frustrated. "What kind of forest is this?" Rukia asked no one in particular. She was really beginning to regret not trying to take the time to grab anything before leaving the Fourth Division. _'Though I was in a rush...and it's too late now, so it can't be helped.'_

Rukia winced. Her right leg was aching painfully, making it hard to even limp on. She looked around for a place to sit before catching sight of a rock big enough to work as a small bench. She carefully, but slowly made her way over to it before sitting down to rest on it. After a moment passed she looked down at her injured leg before leaning over and pulling up the leg of her pants, which was stained with blood, to look at how much damage she had done to it. Rukia cringed when the breeze hit her wound, making it sting. She looked down at the wound and frowned, _'Ouch, it looks worse than I thought...'_

The wound wasn't small, nor was it big. It was about a medium sized cut that started from under her knee and ended about three inches above her ankle. She could tell that it desperately needed proper cleaning and dressing. Rukia preformed a small healing spell on it before tearing off part of her shihakusho's right leg to wrap it with. _'For now, this is all I can manage. I've got to save my energy to heal any wounds Nii-sama might have. '_

Rukia waited a few more minutes before standing up to continue her search for something to eat and drink. _'I wonder if Nii-sama has anything to keep himself from getting hungry or dehydrated...Just in case I'll save some of anything I find.'_ Rukia thought as she slowly limped through the forest.

About ten minutes had passed before Rukia's search finally paid off. She had found a small bush that grew berries. Upon close inspection she could tell that they were indeed edible. She started picking some immediately, getting as many as she could hold in her hands. Rukia popped a few in her mouth to eat, giving a pleased smile after finally having something to eat again. Luckily, the juice in the berries also quenched a little of her thirst. Rukia picked a few more to make up for the ones she had eaten. "Hopefully there's a stream or pond nearby." She said before suddenly, out from behind her she heard a deafening roar, "Hollow!"

Rukia quickly turned around, making her wince in pain because of the sudden stress she had put on her leg, before looking up to see that she was face to face with a hollow. The hollow was about the size of a fully grown grizzly bear, which normally wouldn't of been a problem for her, or even a newly recruited shinigami to defeat, but she knew she was in a different situation. She couldn't run away because of her leg nor could she fight back because she didn't even have enough strength to take her sword and swing it with enough force to wound the hollow enough to give her time to get away.

Rukia crossed her arms in front of her face in defense as the hollow leaped at her. Her muscles tensed up as she awaited the hollow's attack, but it never came. Instead, right when the hollow's claws were about to make contact with her flesh, she felt herself fall backwards, making the hollow hit nothing but the dirt on the hard ground.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's Chapter Four!**

**I Hope You All Enjoyed It! Thank You To Everyone Who Reviews! (Gives Reviewers A Cookie)**

**And Big Thanks To Hikara-Hime For Helping Come Up With This Flashback Idea!**

**Ooo, Bet You All Can't Wait To See What Happens Next! Well, You'll Know Next Weekend! So Don't Forget To Review! It Makes Me Type Faster And Get The Chapters Up Earlier! I'm Going To Try To Start Typing Up Chapter Five Either Tomorrow Or Wednesday So I Can Have It Up On Friday, Or Early Saturday Like Normal. The Only Reason I Could Not Get This Chapter Uploaded Last Night Is Because I'm Suffering From A Fever Which Is Making Me So Hot That I Can't Cool Off, Shaky, My Coughing Has Become Worse, Headaches, And On My Leg Where A Horsefly Had Bitten Me Hurts Whenever I Put Too Much Pressure On It. So I Was Asleep Most Of The Day Yesterday. I Even Had To Miss School, Which I Didn't Want To Do Because I Had Two Tests That I Will Now Have To Make Up On Monday...Wish Me Luck. xD  
**

**Remember, Read And Review**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	5. Chapter 5

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Five~**

_Rukia crossed her arms in front of her face in defense as the hollow leaped at her. Her muscles tensed up as she awaited the hollow's attack, but it never came. Instead, right when the hollow's claws were about to make contact with her flesh, she felt herself fall backwards, making the hollow hit nothing but the dirt on the hard ground._

–

Rukia felt herself falling backwards. She waited to feel the pain of hitting hard ground, but it never came. Instead she felt her back hit something soft and whatever she had landed on hit the ground with a grunt.

A moment passed as Rukia stayed frozen in the same position on her back in shock.. As her shock faded, she attempted to sit up, only to realize then that there was a strong arm wrapped around her waist, holding her down in an iron grip. That's when she realized that her savior was obviously male, she could tell by the grunt she had heard when they had hit the ground and by the arm that was keeping her in place. She didn't want to say anything, she wasn't sure if the man was a friend or foe since she couldn't sense his reiatsu or see his face.

She attempted to turn around to view his face, but his tight grip around her waist kept her from turning around, she wouldn't be able to turn around without causing herself pain, which she definitely didn't want anymore of, especially since her leg was screaming in pain after the recent and sudden stress that had been put on it.

Rukia gasped when she felt whoever had her move to stand on the balls of his feet, still holding her by the waist and not allowing her to turn. She could feel herself being firmly held against his chest as she saw him take a stance as if he were getting ready to use shun po. Rukia could tell now that he was a shinigami, seeing the standard sandals and socks and the tattered and slightly dirty shihakusho pants. Before the hollow had the chance to sense where they were, Rukia felt the shinigami use shun po to escape.

Rukia felt the wind blowing through her hair as the man carried her away from the hollow. She still wasn't able to get a view of his face because the wind was going by so fast she had to shut her eyes. Secretly, she was amazed at this mans skill, she could tell she would be no match if she somehow got out of his grip to shun po away or try to let him know she could use shun po on her own, though she still wasn't sure if she could trust him. _'Wait a minute, I wouldn't be able to use shun po anyway. Damn leg.'_

Finally, Rukia felt the man slowing down to a walk. She opened her eyes to see that he had entered a small cave of some sort and was walking to the end of it to where Rukia could make out a small light. _'Probably a small fire. That's what I did when I needed to see in the dark or needed warmth when I was younger and living in Rukongai...' _

Once they had reached the end of the cave Rukia's thought was confirmed about it being a small fire. She took in her surroundings as whoever this man was kept his iron grip on her. _'Hmm, this place sure is small. It's a little bigger than Ichigo's room I think...This is the deepest this cave goes and the only way in or out is the way we just came.' _

Rukia closed her eyes tightly before she gathered the nerve to finally speak to him. "W-where ar-" Before she was able to finish she felt herself being gently laid on her back. She felt that she had been placed on some kind of fabric by feeling it. It was then that she noticed a hand on either side of her. _'Trying to keep me from getting up, I guess...What's with this guy? Well at least he gave me enough freedom to lean up or something, but I better stay down for now. If he seems dangerous I'-' _All of her thoughts left her when she looked up to finally see who had saved her, and who she knew was now leaning over her.

Her eyes were wide with surprise and mouth slightly agape. Staring down at her was the one she had been searching for all along. All words were stuck in her throat, making her unable to do anything but stare up at his angered expression that Rukia could tell also showed a different emotion. She could see the emotions of worry and concern in them.

Rukia also saw that he wasn't dressed like he was when she had last seen him. He wasn't wearing his gloves, kenseikan, haori or even his scarf. She was then easily able to guess that what he had placed her on was his haori.

A short moment passed of nothing but silence before Rukia felt tears forming on her eyes, which she hoped he couldn't tell were there. "Ni-Nii-sa-"

"Why are you here?" He interrupted. Demanding to know why she was out in the forest alone where there was obvious danger, which included the Zanpakutou and Hollows.

In a normal situation, Rukia knew she would've looked to the ground before answering him, but this time she couldn't...she wouldn't. She was still in shock that he was here now and that if she looked away he might disappear again.

_'Her tears are becoming more noticeable...'_ Byakuya thought, he wasn't going to let Rukia see though, he refused to let his eyes show how much it hurt him when she was upset.

"N-Nii-sama..." Rukia choked. Repeating his name for the second time.

Byakuya couldn't keep the anger in his expression anymore. Hearing Rukia choke out his name, close to tears...He couldn't hold anything in his eyes but concern and the need to know why she was getting so upset.

Rukia clutched the fabric of Byakuya's haori beneath her tightly in her hands, "Nii-s-sama..."

"Rukia?" Byakuya questioned. His eyes told her that he wanted to know what was wrong. He could see her loosing her composure fast and he didn't know what to do or say.

Rukia lost all control then. She suddenly let go of the haori, pushed herself up and locked her arms around his neck in a tight embrace, making Byakuya's eyes widen in surprise, and finally letting out the emotions and tears she'd had bottled up ever since Byakuya had disappeared.

"N-Nii-sama, y-you're really here!? I-I didn't k-know what to do! I-I just felt so s-s-scared and a-alone! When y-you had d-disa-disappeared, I w-was so wor-worried! I was able t-to get to the W-World of the Living, e-even though I was injured, b-but I came back a-against ev-everyone's protests. I j-just had to find you and m-make sure y-you were o-okay....A-And when you weren't th-there..." Rukia hiccupped, "W-When you wer-weren't there, I w-was so worried! B-but before I could start s-searching...Sode n-no Shirayuki showed u-up a-and I fought h-her but..."

In all the years Byakuya had known her, he had never seen her this upset. He listened to every word she cried with widened eyes. He never thought his sudden absence would cause her this much worry and grief.

Byakuya was unsure of how to comfort her, but he felt the need to at least try. Slowly, he lifted his right arm to wrap it around Rukia's waist. He then heard Rukia gasp in surprise at his actions.

_'Oh no...'_ Rukia thought, her eyes widening in realization of what she had just done. _'I, I just lost it in front of him, oh no....Oh no...'_ She started to push away, but Byakuya wasn't going to allow it. She felt him keep his hold on her, making escape impossible.

"Stop struggling, Rukia." Byakuya said quietly, "Just let it all out..."

Byakuya felt Rukia stay still for a short moment before he felt her wrapping her arms around his neck once more. She buried her head in his shoulder and took in deep, slow breaths, calming herself down. His position was becoming uncomfortable for him, as it was starting to to hurt his arm that was still on the ground. He moved to sit back, with Rukia still in his grasp, meaning to sit her in his lap, but the moment he moved he felt Rukia clutch his robes and wince painfully, immediately making him go back to his leaning position. Byakuya unhooked Rukia's arms from around him to lay her back down on her back.

Rukia looked up to see Byakuya staring back at her in concern. "I'm s-sorry, Nii-sama. When I was fighting Sode no Shirayuki I was injured pretty badly, and I didn't give my injuries time to heal before coming to look for you and my worst injury, a cut on my right le-"

Byakuya didn't need to know anymore, he quickly moved to examine her right leg. He carefully unwrapped the bloodied fabric of her shihakusho she had used as a bandage. When he saw her injury, Rukia had heard him do something that she could tell he never meant to do; he had unintentionally gasped. It was almost silent, but loud enough for Rukia to hear.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Byakuya asked, looking back at her.

Rukia frowned, "I didn't want to worry you and I didn't think it was really that bad anyways..."

"Not that bad?" Byakuya echoes, before giving a sigh. He went over to Rukia's side, careful not to make contact with her wound. Rukia looks at him questioningly before she felt herself being lifted off of the ground. She looked up at him in surprise as Byakuya picked her up, bridal style.

Before Rukia could ask, Byakuya had used shun po; making Rukia latch onto the front of his robes to steady herself.

–

Rukia felt Byakuya slow down and then after a few steps, stop. She opened her eyes to see where he had taken her, and when she saw the scenery before her, she gasped.

The first thing she had realized was a small lake, surrounded by many trees and bushes, which would make it almost impossible to find. The second thing she noticed was that it was nighttime, the full moon and the stars reflecting off the lakes water, making the lake sparkle with beauty.

Byakuya walked over to the edge of the lake and carefully sat Rukia down on the grass. He kept his emotionless expression as he walked over to sit down by her injured leg.

"Why are we here?" Rukia asked, watching Byakuya scoop up some of the clear water in his hands.

"Your wound needs cleaning before I can properly heal it." Byakuya stated. "This may sting." He said before letting the water slowly pour onto her wound, making Rukia wince slightly. He knew this wasn't the best way to clean her injury, but it was all they could manage until they returned to the Seireitei where the Fourth Division could properly take care of her injuries.

Once he had gotten her injury as clean as he could, he performed a healing spell strong enough to close it up. It would also allow her to walk on it instead of limp, even though she still wouldn't be able to run or walk too fast on it yet. It was then he realized that her injury hadn't looked like Rukia had even tried to use her own kido to heal it and he wanted to know why she hadn't.

"Why haven't you tried to heal this? If you have you certainly didn't use much power in your spell, which I know full well you have."

Rukia frowned, "I-I wanted to save my energy and strength just in case y-you had any injuries that needed healing."

Byakuya looked up at her, surprise clear in his expression. He couldn't say anything though, he couldn't be angry at her either because he knew if he were in Rukia's place and Rukia in his, he would've done the same.

They held each other's gazes for a moment, before being interrupted by a sudden growl from Rukia's stomach. Rukia turned red with embarrassment and quickly shifted her gaze down.

"How long has it been since you've eaten?" Byakuya asked.

"W-well...Besides those few berries I had eaten earlier today...I actually haven't had anything to eat or drink since before I had left the Fourth Division..." Rukia answered reluctantly.

Byakuya's eyes widened in surprise, which Rukia gave a nervous laugh to in reply. She could tell he was concerned, which secretly made her feel a little happy. _'I wonder if Nii-sama knows he hasn't been keeping his normal emotionless and icy expression around me...' _

"It's okay, Nii-sama. I'm fine, when I was still living in Rukongai I sometimes had to go days without food." Rukia said, trying to reassure him, but the mention of food made her stomach growl once more, making her turn redder if that were possible.

When Rukia had mentioned Rukongai and sometimes having to go days without eating, it made Byakuya feel sad, even though he was careful not to show it. Though he then felt relieved and a little happier when he remembered she would never have to live under those conditions again now that she was part of the Kuchiki family and a shinigami.

After a short moment of silence, Byakuya went back to focusing on Rukia's injury. He tore off some of his own sleeve from his shihakusho to wrap it up. He was relieved to find that her injury miraculously hadn't become infected. When he had finished wrapping her leg, he carefully brought her closer to the water.

"N-Nii-sama?" Rukia questioned.

"Drink."

Rukia looked down at the water before scooping some of it in her hands to bring it up to her lips to drink.

"Thank you, Nii-sama." Rukia said, giving him a smile after she had had enough to quench her thirst.

Byakuya nodded in response before picking her up off of the ground once more, he then used shun po in order to quickly get back to the cave. He knew she could walk now, but she wasn't as fast as him and he didn't want to take any chances since their location was dangerous whether it was night or day.

–

Once back inside the cave, Byakuya gently place Rukia back on his haori before walking over to another end of the small cave and picked up a small bundle of something, taking something out of it. He walked back over to Rukia and sat down closely to her on her right. Rukia looked up at him questioningly before looking back down, noticing he had his hand open to her, offering her a small pile of berries that he had gathered before finding her.

"Eat these tonight and we'll go find something better in the morning." Byakuya told her in his normal tone of voice.

Rukia nodded before she took the berries from his hand and started eating.

When she was finished eating, there was nothing but silence; making Rukia feel slightly uncomfortable.

"Nii-sama, if you don't mind me asking...Why didn't you come back after you had gotten away?" Rukia asked, trying to start a conversation.

"I didn't come back because I was trying to think of a way to stop that intruder that unleashed our Zanpakutou. To do that, I needed a quiet place to think and the way the Seireitei currently is...there's just no way any quiet thinking could be accomplished. Though I wasn't expecting you to get a injured as you did and I wasn't expecting you to come looking for me." He answered.

Rukia looked down, "I'm sorry."

"Why?" Byakuya asked, looking down at her.

Rukia's gaze then shifted to the cave wall in front of her, "I-I'm sorry for running away from the Seireitei to come look for you, but I just couldn't help myself. I-It's just that the worry and sadness was killing me, I just had to know for a fact that you were okay...I just felt so scared that if I couldn't find you, I'd be alone again."

Byakuya's eyes widened at her last statement, before his expression turned serious again. "That wouldn't happen. You'll never be alone ever again, I won't allow that to happen. That promise is one I intend to never break."

Rukia couldn't help but smile at his words, she then tried to wipe away some tears that were quickly forming, but Byakuya intervened and wiped them away himself, which shocked Rukia. When he withdrew his hand she looked up at him and smiled softly.

"Thank you." She said kindly.

Byakuya silently wondered if he knew she was blushing, which made him unknowingly smile. He quickly lost that smile though when he heard Rukia gasp. "What's wrong?" He asked.

"Y-You smiled!" She answered in a shocked tone, that also held a hint of noticeable happiness in it.

Byakuya's expression held surprise for a small moment before changing into an amused one, which included a small smile. He figured since they were the only ones out here it would be okay, since he knew Rukia would never go around telling everyone that the emotionless captain of the Sixth Division had actually smiled, and even if she did he knew no one would believe her.

"It's not like I'm forbidden from smiling, Rukia."

Rukia would have questioned him, but before she could a yawn escaped from her.

"You need to get some sleep, I can tell you haven't been getting proper rest." Byakuya said in a stern, but also, surprising to Rukia, gentle voice.

Rukia then gave a small nod in agreement. Byakuya held her gaze for a moment before making a move to leave so she could lay down, but when he was on a single knee Rukia quickly grabbed his sleeve before he could stand. He looked down at her in surprise.

"Please don't leave...P-Please stay..." He heard her ask nervously.

"I'll stay." Byakuya said calmly after a short moment had passed.

"Thank you." She said, smiling up at him in relief before she let go of his sleeve.

Byakuya moved over to allow Rukia enough room to lay down before laying down himself, closely beside her.

"Do you think things will turn out okay after this Zanpakutou Rebellion is over with?" Rukia asked.

Byakuya could tell she was worried for everyone, even the zanpakutou, he understood why she was worried as well, he just didn't want her getting hurt. He put his arm around her and pulled her closely to him in an attempt to calm her and keep her warm for the night. He then tucked her head neatly under his chin.

"I'm not entirely sure how things will turn out, but I believe everything will turn out okay eventually."

Rukia felt surprised when he had pulled her to him, but she then realized her surprise was quickly replaced with the feelings of being calmer and safe. She snuggled up closer to him, hoping he wouldn't mind. She felt his hold on her tighten, making her smile.

"I feel like things will turn out okay too." She agreed before another yawn escaped her.

"Sleep, Rukia. I'll wake you up in the morning when it's time to go search for food."

"Okay." Rukia said before closing her eyes. "Goodnight, Nii-sama."

"Goodnight, Rukia." He echoed, making Rukia smile before she drifted off into sleep without any nightmares to disturb her.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's Chapter Five! I actually started typing this chapter out last Sunday and I just now finished it. I had been typing a little more to it each day. Hopefully you all enjoyed it and will review.**

**And thank you all for the reviews you've all given me so far. You're all awesome! Hopefully I'll continue to get such good reviews and people will continue to enjoy this story.**

**Chapter Six is longer than this one, so expect another long chapter. Right now I'm writing out chapter nine and I'm soon to be on chapter ten!**

**Remember, Read and Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	6. Chapter 6

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Six~**

Senbonzakura stood on the balcony of a tall building, looking over the Soul Society. He quietly stood making no sound or movement as he stared out at the view of the Sereitei.

"What's the recent occurrences with the shinigami?" A soft, female's voice asked from behind as she approached him.

Senbonzakura glanced at Sode no Shirayuki when she was beside him before shifting his gaze back to the Seireitei. "There was a battle between Muramasa and Kurosaki Ichigo. Muramasa temporarily recruited Zangetsu, but that child was able to get him back."

"I see." Sode no Shirayuki said as she stared out at the Seireitei with Senbonzakura.

"Hey, check out the two love birds." A voice said with a laugh. A second voice also gave a small chuckle.

Sode no Shirayuki turned her head slightly to see that it was Ruriiro Kujaku and Houzukimaru who were intruding on their private conversation. She gave them a small frown before turning her attention back to the view.

"How have you been doing?" Ruriiro Kujaku asked them, smirking.

"It's none of your concerns..." Senbonzakura calmly replied, not bothering to turn his attention to them as he kept his gaze ahead of him.

Ruriiro Kujaku frowned before turning to Houzukimaru, "These two are no fun." He said before he turned his back to them and walked away. Houzukimaru smirked before following after Ruriiro Kujaku back inside.

–

"Rukia...Rukia, wake up." A calm but stern voice called, intruding Rukia's dreams as she slowly began to wake up.

Slowly, she sat up and rubbed her eyes tiredly before looking over to Byakuya who was sitting beside her, patiently waiting on her to fully awaken.

"Good morning." Rukia said with a smile, and then suppressing a small yawn after wards.

"Good morning," Byakuya echoed softly, "In a few minutes we'll go out and to find some more food, I'll give you time to wake up before we leave."

Rukia nodded to let Byakuya know she understood before she started smoothing out her hair as much as she could.

_'Ugh, the first thing I'm doing when we get back to the Seireitei is take a nice, long shower'_ Rukia thought as she brushed through any tangle her fingers could brush out.

She looked over to where Byakuya was sitting to find that he wasn't there anymore. She looked around to find that he was standing near the caves exit, waiting on her patiently. Rukia stood up and patted herself off to rid her tattered shihakusho of any sand or dust before she walking over to join him. Once she was at his side he motioned for her to follow him before he turned and started walking down the caves path that led outside with Rukia following close behind.

Rukia had to shield her eyes for a moment when they were outside, due to the morning sun's brightness. Byakuya looked down at her and waited until her eyes adjusted.

"Stay close at all times and don't let yourself out of my line of sight. Even though it's still early, it's still dangerous out here."

"Okay..." Rukia said, giving a short nod before she followed him into the forest to start their search.

–

_'Okay...this is pretty awkward...Ever since we left to search for food he hasn't said a thing. Maybe I should start a conversation...Yeah, that's what I'll do.'_ Rukia thought as she walked along side Byakuya. He may not of said anything, but Rukia had noticed him glance down at her from time to time. She didn't let him know she knew though.

"Nii-sama, how exactly did you come to find that cave? It must have been hard to find one deserted and just free to use." Rukia asked, trying to start a conversation to avoid anymore silence.

"After I had escaped Senbonzakura, I used most of my energy to use shun po to get away. I ended up here in this forest and was luckily already near that cave, which was already vacant when I found it." He answered calmly.

"Oh...Um-"

"I had planned on going back to the Seireitei when I had sensed you fighting against your zanpakutou, but my injuries weren't yet healed enough at the time and it slowed me down. Before I pulled you out of that hollow's attack yesterday I was actually getting ready to head back, but I sensed your reiatsu nearby and I went to your location just in time to get you away from that hollow." Byakuya continued, still using his calm tone.

"I'm sorry." Rukia said, frowning.

As soon as those words left her lips, Byakuya stopped, took her hand and turned her around to face him. Rukia looked up at him in surprise before she attempted to look down, but Byakuya used his hand to lift her chin up so they were making eye contact.

"There's nothing to apologize for, Rukia. If I were in your place I would have done exactly what you did no matter how injured I may be. I would've done whatever it took to find you again and make sure you stayed safe." Byakuya stated, his tone changing from calm to serious.

When he saw the tears forming under her widened eyes, he acted on impulse and pulled her into a comforting embrace. He felt Rukia's arms wrap tightly around his waist after a short moment of shock passed her.

"There's no need for tears, everything is alright." He said gently, trying to sooth her.

"You must think I'm pathetic...I've never come this close to crying so much for as long as I can remember..." Rukia said, her voice slightly muffled from Byakuya's robes.

"You're not pathetic, you're just worried and a little shaken from everything that's been going on is all."

"Y-yeah...You're right." Rukia mumbled in agreement before snuggling deeper into his embrace.

–

Two hours into their search they had finally come across some apples and were now sitting by the small lake Byakuya had taken Rukia the previous night to clean her injury. Even in the daylight the lake was beautiful, the sun reflected off of the water much like the moon did, causing it to shine continuously throughout a sunny day or a clear starry night, with a full moon lighting the sky.

As Rukia took a bite out of her apple, a question came to mind and she quickly finished chewing and swallowed before turning her attention to Byakuya, to her surprise she found that he had finished his apple already and was currently watching her, making her turn a little red.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your gloves and kenseikan? I saw you still had your scarf back in the cave, but I didn't see anything other than that and your haori there." Rukia asked questioningly.

"My kenseikan were destroyed and my gloves were torn to shreds by Senbonzakura's blades when I was still trying to get away." Byakuya explained, then he asked her a question, " Why did you want to know?"

Rukia shrugged, "I was just curious since you're always wearing them."

"I see..." Byakuya said quietly, before turning his attention to the lake.

Rukia took a breath before she asked, "By the way, why were you staring at me earlier?"

The question took Byakuya by surprise, because honestly...he didn't know why. He wasn't really all there at that moment because his main focus had been on her lips, but he still wasn't sure why. He never even notice when she had caught him staring.

Byakuya turned his head so Rukia couldn't see his face, his eyes were closed as he said, "It's not important."

He heard Rukia laugh in reply, which made him look back at her. Recently, he had found her laugh to be pleasant to hear. Even though he never let her know that. He felt a small smile appear on his face as he looked back out at the lake, like Rukia was currently doing.

After a moment, Rukia started shifting through her thoughts. She looked over to Byakuya, taking a quick glance at him. He was still staring out at the lake, which made a smile appear on her expression. She then took the chance to move closer to him and quietly took in some air to calm herself before resting her head on his shoulder.

She was expecting him to tense up or recommend they go back to the cave, but she was surprised when she shifted her gaze to him, using her hair as a veil, to see see that he looked perfectly relaxed and didn't seem to mind her using his shoulder to rest on, which made her smile happily.

Rukia closed her eyes as she rested against Byakuya. As she breathed she could smell a hint of sakura blossoms, no doubt it was Byakuya's scent. Rukia didn't know why, or she thought she didn't, but she loved it. She hadn't even noticed it until the night before, when she was sleeping in his arms. Just the thought of that made her smile widen. Rukia was starting to understand why she felt this way whenever she was around him, though she knew her assumption couldn't possibly become reality even if she were to fully realize those feelings within her were true.

_'Ugh, I shouldn't even be thinking of things like that. It's an impossibility no matter how I feel.'_ Rukia thought in frustration, her expression saddening. She knew she couldn't help herself from thinking about those things. When Byakuya had disappeared she felt nothing but pain, sadness and constant worry. She felt as if she would never be happy again unless he returned safely. Then when she had seen him again after being saved from that hollow, she felt immediate relief and the painful feelings were gone. She had felt safe and happy again and she didn't want to leave his side no matter what, because she never wanted those unhappy and painful feelings to ever come back.

Byakuya wondered if Rukia knew she had moved even closer against him, he soon guessed that he didn't after looking down at her to see her troubled face. It saddened him to her frowning or unhappy in general. He could tell she was in deep thought about something.

Rukia had unknowingly snuggled herself even closer to against him. So much that Byakuya's arm was now around her and her head was rested against his chest while her hands were clutching onto his shihakusho. Byakuya saw that whatever she was thinking about was bothering her, which made him want to know what it was. He wanted to know so he could at least try to make her feel better. He hated it seeing her like this, he was thankful she wasn't crying though. Just seeing her tears physically hurt him, even though he let no on see how painful it truly was to him. Byakuya then carefully adjusted his arm around her more comfortably, which she didn't seem to notice.

Byakuya starting thinking back of when he had brought her back from Hueco Mundo, after the fight against Yammy, the Cero Espada. He didn't even want to imagine about what would of happened to her if he and the other captains that were trapped there in Hueco Mundo hadn't of shown up to help defeat that giant. He didn't know what he would have done if he had lost her. Earlier, when he was fighting against the Seventh Espada, Zomari Leroux, and she had been taken control of by Zomari's power and had almost decapitated herself, Byakuya could have sworn he felt his world crumbling inside of him. He couldn't even breath when she had her zanpakutou's blade that close to her neck.

Ever since he had saved her from Gin Ichimaru's blade, his feelings for her had started growing. He realized he could never voice them though, he hated that, because he knew she'd never feel the same. He wanted her to be happy though, even it meant hurting him.

Rukia felt Byakuya's arm tighten around her, she knew he was doing it unconsciously, just like she had done moments ago when she had moved closer against him and had latched onto him while she was thinking. She was curious what he was thinking about though and why it seemed to bother him.

They had stayed in each others arms until the sun had started to set. Rukia had even almost fallen asleep, she had just become so comfortable she couldn't help but almost drift off.

"We should head back, it's getting late." She heard Byakuya say.

"Y-yeah." Rukia replied, after a short moment of silence had passed.

Byakuya slowly, and Rukia could have sworn almost reluctantly, unwrap his arm from around her to stand up. The truth was that she didn't want to let go of him either, but, like Byakuya, she slowly let go of his shihakusho.

Byakuya offered his hand to her to help her stand, which made her smile at him before taking his hand. He carefully pulled her to her feet, but he didn't let go of her hand once she was standing, his grip actually tightened a little, as if he didn't want to let go. Truthfully he really didn't want to let go. He quickly glanced down at Rukia, who was looking down at their intertwined hands and he was surprised to see a smile on her face. A small flicker of what he guessed was hope ignited within him, but he quickly tried to brush it away because he thought he was just reading too much into it.

Byakuya looked up at the darkening sky, "We should get going." He stated, looking back down at her.

Before Rukia had time to answer, Byakuya had gathered her up in his arms and was now using shun po to get back to the cave before it was too dark.

–

Byakuya slowed himself to a walk when he had entered the cave with Rukia still being held protectively in his arms.

He gently placed Rukia on his haori that still remained lying on the ground. Rukia laid down once Byakuya had let go of her and Byakuya joined her after he had straightened out the top of his shihakusho. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to him like he had the previous night and Rukia wrapped her arms around him; placing her head comfortably on his chest. His arms tightened around her before he tucked her head under his chin.

"We'll return to the Seireitei in a day or so to assist the remaining shinigami however we can in order to stop Muramasa." Byakuya explained.

Rukia was about to respond but Byakuya continued, "When we return you are to stay with me at all times. I know you nor I want a repeat of the last time we were there."

Rukia felt relief wash over her when Byakuya had said that. He was right, she didn't want a repeat of the last time either. Though she knew if it did happen again she wouldn't hesitate to go searching again.

Byakuya's main reason for wanting Rukia to stay with himonce they returned was because he felt that he needed to keep her safe and protect her. He didn't want her getting hurt and he swore to himself that if anyone even mentioned hurting her that he would show the heathen no mercy whether they were an arrancar, hollow, zanpakutou, or even another shinigami.

"Nii-sama...." Rukia called a second time. Byakuya had been so lost in his thoughts he hadn't even heard Rukia call him the first time.

"Yes?" He answered, while on the inside he seethed at how he was really starting to hate those words, 'Nii-sama'...

Rukia smiled, "I was trying to tell you that I would. I'll stay by your side at all times once we return." She then clutched him tightly before she slowly buried her head into his robes, her smile changing into a frown. Byakuya then knew instinctively something was wrong.

"Ru-" He tried to ask, but Rukia continued in a barely audible whisper.

"B-because...I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you."

Byakuya's eyes widened, but before he could say anything he heard Rukia gasp before she quickly sat up.

"You weren't supposed to hear that..." She said through her hands, that were now covering her mouth. Her eyes were wide, she hadn't meant to say that out loud. _'Stupid! So Stupid! Jeez, can't I even keep my thoughts to myself!? I'm so stupid! Nii-sama's going to think I'm some kind freak!'_

She wanted to run, but she knew she couldn't. She did get though and backed away, but that made Byakuya think she was going to run. He quickly stood up, but he didn't move; he didn't want to startle her.

As Rukia was backing up, she lost her balance when the heel of her foot hit a rock. She gasped when she felt herself fall, but she never hit the ground. Byakuya had used shun po to get over to her and catch her before she hit the ground.

He securely wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace because he knew she would try to shove him away, which is exactly what she did. As soon as Rukia felt his arms around her she immediately struggled to get away.

Byakuya's hold loosened when she stopped struggling. Rukia now had her face hidden in chest and her hands clutching the fabric of his robes that covered his shoulders. He could feel her tears wetting his shihakusho, but she wasn't making any sound or movement to show that she was crying; her silent tears being the only sign.

"I'm s-sorry." He heard her say in a muffled voice. "I...I'm s-so sorry..."

Byakuya didn't know what to say, he wondered if her statement had meant she felt the same as he secretly did or if she just meant that she would be heartbroken if she were to lose the one she knew only as her brother. _'But...if my second assumption was true, why would she be acting this way? It wouldn't make sense...She acted as if she had just blurted out the biggest secret of her life.' _

He wanted to ask her, but he knew she would never tell him. He knew he had to do something though. Byakuya quickly thought through what the best approach would be. _'Please let me right...'_ He silently prayed when he had come up with a decision.

"Rukia." Byakuya calmly called, trying to get Rukia's attention so she'd look up at him.

The only response Byakuya got was when Rukia tightened her grip on his robes.

"Rukia. Look at me." He said, still using his calm tone.

Byakuya started to see Rukia slowly lifting her head to look up at him. Byakuya let out a silent breath, he really hoped he was making the right decision. The moment he saw eye contact between them, he quickly but carefully lowered his head and softly placed his lips on hers.

Rukia's eyes went wide immediately at the contact. She wondered if this was even happening, if she were dreaming. She couldn't believe Byakuya was really kissing her. Rukia could feel her control quickly slipping away along with her sense of right and wrong as she slowly responded by kissing him back.

After a short moment passed Byakuya pulled away and looked into Rukia's eyes before he let a small smile appear on his face. Rukia's response had told him everything he needed to know, and he was happy to know he had made the right decision.

Rukia could feel her face heat up the moment Byakuya had pulled away. To say she had liked it would be an understatement. She had loved it, the feel of his lips on hers had sent her mind into a frenzy. It had just felt so right to her. Rukia unknowingly let a smile appear on her face, but then it was replaced with a frown. Byakuya frowned as well when he saw her smile slip away.

"Isn't it wrong? Y-you know...us being together..." Rukia asked nervously, staring at the ground as she awaited his answer.

Byakuya used his fingers to lift her chin up so she was looking at him, "It's not. We aren't really related, Rukia. I could have those adoption papers destroyed if you wanted."

Rukia smiled at Byakuya's words before moving her arms from his chest to wrap them around his neck in an embrace, which he returned by wrapping his arms around her waist. He was glad she was feeling better, it was then that he remembered it was late and that they both needed sleep.

He moved out of the embrace to look at her, giving her a soft smile before saying, "We'll sleep in for an hour or two before we start the day tomorrow."

"Okay." Rukia said before moving back over to her place on his haori, waiting on him before she laid down.

When Byakuya was lying down he pulled Rukia to him and smiled when she cuddled up to him comfortably.

"Goodnight." Rukia said, a smile still clear on her face.

"Goodnight." Byakuya echoed before closing his eyes, both of them drifting off together in a peaceful slumber.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Sorry For The Long Wait Everyone! School Was Keeping Me Super Busy Because My Math Teacher Is Causing Us Problems. Everyone Is Practically Failing And It's Hard To Do Twenty-Four Pages Of Homework In A Single Night.**

**So I've Been Trying To Get My Grades Up, Which Has Taken A Lot Of Time Away From The Computer. Thanks For All The Reviews Everyone! I Really Hope You Enjoyed This Chapter, Sorry If Some Points Seemed Overly Out Of Character, I Really Tried To Keep It As In Character As Possible.**

**And Was Anyone Else Besides Me Disappointed In How Little Screentime Byakuya Got In 'Fade To Black?' I Think Byakuya Deserved To Get More Screentime then he did, even though his scenes were both awesome and sad at the same time, especially since it was a Rukia-based movie. **

**I Have Up To Chapter Ten Written Out. So Hopefully You'll All Enjoy The Future Chapters To Come. Well, Until Next Time!**

**Remember To Review!**

**Just Remember NO FLAMING!**


	7. Chapter 7

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Seven~**

_Byakuya and Rukia sat outside, in front of the doorway to Rukia's room, as they both stared up at the starry night sky. It had only been only a day or so after Byakuya had made his promise to never allow Rukia to be alone ever again, which was a conversation that was still clear as day in Rukia's mind. _

_Ever since they returned from Hueco Mundo, Rukia had made it a habit to go with Byakuya on his night time walks in the gardens. She was happy to know that he didn't mind in the least, but they didn't share many conversations. Though, a question was weighing heavily on Rukia's mind, it had been since she had been in Hueco Mundo, and she was tired of feeling too nervous to ask him about it. Tonight though, she wasn't going to let it go unasked. _

_Byakuya turned his attention away from the full moon to Rukia, he noticed she looked as if something was troubling her. _

"_Rukia, is something wrong?" He asked, in his usual monotone voice._

_Rukia jumped slightly when he spoke, surprised by his question. She couldn't help but turn to look at him, but as soon as they had made eye contact that nervous feeling started bubbling up inside of her. She quickly looked down at her hands, _'Geez, Rukia...Why can't you just ask him this one simple question? Stupid nervousness!'

"_No, not really." She nervously replied._

_Byakuya waited a moment, to see if she hadn't finished talking yet, but when she didn't say anything more he turned his attention back to the sky, but it quickly went back to Rukia as she started speaking once more._

"_It's just...Back in Hueco Mundo, Kotetsu-fukutaicho had told me something that she overheard you say..." Rukia continued._

_What Rukia failed to noticed though was Byakuya's quick change in expression after she had spoken because she was still gazing at her hand rather than Byakuya. _

_Byakuya paused before asking, "What had she heard?"_

"_Kotetsu-fukutaicho thought that I had a right to know, so please don't be angry with her for telling me. She told me that...when you were finishing off the espada you were fighting...she heard you refer to me as your...," Rukia's face reddened, "Your pride." She held her breath, waiting for him to reply._

_Byakuya's eyes widened slightly but then quickly returned to their usual slanted look. He turned his gaze back to the sky before replying, still in his usual tone, "What you were told is correct."_

_Rukia's head whipped up to face him, her held breath coming out as an almost inaudible gasp, in surprise. Byakuya turned his attention back to her, seeing her surprised look and her mouth agape. He kept his emotionless mask on though, controlling the urge to smile at her slightly humorous expression. Byakuya returned his gaze to the sky once more before saying,_

"_Rukia, you're going to catch a fly in your mouth if you aren't careful."_

_Rukia quickly closed her mouth and looked down, blushing furiously. _

–

Byakuya slowly came to, opening his eyes tiredly. He thought about the dream he just had for a moment, remembering Rukia's reaction to finding out that she was his pride. He would never forget that night, it was one of the most memorable conversations they had had on their nighttime walks. His eyes then shifted as he looked around the dark cave, quickly realizing it was still very late at night or early in the morning.

He looked down at Rukia, who was still soundly asleep in his arms. One of the things Byakuya noticed was that Rukia looked so peaceful and beautiful in her sleep, which made him wonder how he never noticed it until only recently. He was proud to call her his pride and he knew he always would be which made him smile unconsciously. Byakuya buried his head in her hair and closed his eyes, falling back to sleep in a matter of minutes.

–

Ukitake sat in front of Unohana's desk. When daylight hit he had arranged a small meeting with her about Rukia, who he was beginning to become concerned about. Unohana sat behind her desk, waiting patiently for Ukitake to speak.

"I'm starting to become concerned about Rukia, she's been gone for awhile now." Ukitake said, giving a sigh afterwards.

"Yes. I've been worried as well, especially since she had those wounds and they weren't fully healed." Unohana replied.

Ukitake took a sip of tea from his cup, "I really hope Rukia has found Byakuya. At least then she won't be as worried and she can properly focus on taking care of herself, even though I'm pretty sure Byakuya wouldn't just let her worry about him in her condition and that he'd help her as best he could until they come back."

Unohana nodded before taking a sip from her cup, " I hope she's found him as well and that neither of them are seriously injured."

"Yeah." Ukitake agreed, staring down into his cup.

–

Byakuya tiredly opened his eyes, slowly waking up from his peaceful slumber. He could tell it was daylight now, probably around eight in the morning. His eyes shifted beside him to see Rukia, who was sitting up only a few inches away from him. She was using her fingers to brush out her hair.

Byakuya blinked before asking, "How long have you been awake?"

Rukia jumped in surprise before looking down at Byakuya, who was now propped up on his arm, "I haven't been awake for long. Probably about ten minutes." She replied, nervously smiling.

She then tried to put her hands in her lap, but pulled her hand away from her hair too quickly which pulled a knot in her hair; making her yelp in pain.

Byakuya sat up when Rukia yelped and he made his way behind her before he gently started to help straighten her hair with his own fingers. Rukia placed her hands on her lap and let him continue.

"Thanks."

Byakuya was able to get a few knots out, but then it had become more frustrating because of not having been washed for awhile. He knew his hair probably wasn't any better, but it was unavoidable when they were out in the forest. Byakuya knew Rukia hated being covered in dirty and he couldn't blame her. He hated it just as much as she did. It was then that an idea suddenly came to him.

Rukia turned around to face Byakuya, but when she turned around she felt herself being lifted off the ground by Byakuya. Before Rukia could question him, he took off with her out of the cave with the use of shun po.

–

The next thing Rukia knew was she was at the lake. Byakuya carried her over to a rock that was at the edge of the water and placed her on it. Rukia gave him a questioning look and was about to ask why he had suddenly brought her here, but before she could he motioned, with his hand, to her to let him speak.

"I'll go and wait behind that tree," Byakuya said, pointing to a large tree about six feet away from where they were, "while I'm over there, you can use the lake to clean yourself off."

Rukia felt her face heat up tremendously at that moment. _'Did he just seriously tell me to take a bath while he'll only be a few feet away!? Regardless if he were to sit behind a tree or not, It's still...It's still...'_

"W-what did you just say?" Rukia asked, stuttering nervously.

"I will go wait for you behind that tree," He pointed it out once more,"while you clean yourself off in the lake...If it makes you feel any better you can be assured that I'm not the type to peek."

_'How was that supposed to make me feel better!? The thought of him peeking never even came to mind until he said something...I'm probably as red as ripe tomato and have the dumbest expression on my face that Nii-sama's ever seen!' _Rukia thought, she quickly shook herself to get rid of those thoughts and then looked at Byakuya, who was wearing a small smirk on his face.

Byakuya then stood up, not waiting for an answer, and walked off towards the tree.

"Rukia, the same rules apply for when you're done and it's my turn." Byakuya replied, his smirk still slightly visible on his face before he suddenly turned serious. "Don't take too long. Even though it's still early it's still dangerous. It's alright though, while I wait I'll be on the lookout for any dangers."

Byakuya then made his way behind the tree and sat down, resting his head back against it.

Once Byakuya had disappeared from her view, Rukia waited a moment before looking around herself in all directions to make sure everything was clear. When she was sure, she proceeded to undress and wade into the water. She suppressed a yelp at feeling how cold the water was, because she knew if she did Byakuya would think something was wrong and rush to her side and she definitely didn't want _that_ to happen.

Afterwards, when she was done, she had quickly gotten out of the lake and dried herself the best she could without using her shihakusho or a towel. Rukia put her shihakusho back on, feeling better now that she was cleaner. She was actually glad Byakuya had thought of this, despite her embarrassment of the idea at first. Rukia turned towards the tree Byakuya had told her he would be waiting behind and called for him.

"I'm done, Nii-sama!"

Byakuya came out from his place behind the large tree and made his way over to her. He stopped in front of her and leaned down, giving her a soft kiss on her lips before he moved to whisper in her ear.

"We're going to have to break your habit of calling me that. Hopefully it won't be too difficult to do so."

Rukia blushed slightly before giving him a single nod. She then started walking towards tree and disappearing behind it. Byakuya had a small smile on his face as he thought about how exactly he'd have to help her break the previously mentioned _habit_ of hers and start getting her to call him by his name.

Once he was cleaner and dressed again Byakuya silently made his way over to Rukia, who didn't know he was even out of the lake yet. She gasped in surprise when he had suddenly lifted her off of the ground and into his arms. Byakuya carried her back towards the lake to the spot they had been sitting at the previous day when they had been eating.

Byakuya pulled Rukia closer to his side once they were seated.

"We'll start heading back to the Seireitei early tomorrow morning." Byakuya said in a calm tone.

"Okay." Rukia replied before cautiously moving under Byakuya's arm, which he then wrapped around her, placing her head on his chest and arm around the front of his waist. "I wonder if everyone in the Seireitei is alright."

"I'm sure they're alright. We'll know for sure by tomorrow when we get back." Byakuya said in an attempt to reassure her.

"Yeah..." Rukia agreed, but then she remembered something and looked up at him, "When you said we were going to have to break my habit of calling you 'Nii-sama'...well what am supposed to call you?" She asked.

Byakuya smirked and looked down at her, "Call me by my name and nothing more."

Rukia blushed slightly, she knew what he meant. He wanted her to just call him 'Byakuya', meaning no honorifics. "Byakuya...." She said, testing out how his name would sound without adding anything after it.

Byakuya's smirk turned into a smile when she had said his name. Hearing his name come from her sounded like a heavenly ring to him. He gave her a gentle squeeze, "You'll still have to refer to me as brother in public until I can figure something out."

"Alright." Rukia said, letting him know she understood.

Almost an hour had passed before Rukia's stomach emitted a growl, making Byakuya and her eyes open with Rukia gain an almost unnoticeable blush. Byakuya then stood up and offered Rukia his hand, which Rukia happily accepted.

"I remember were we had found those apples from yesterday." Byakuya said.

Rukia nodded before she let Byakuya lead the way to wherever they had found yesterday's meal.

–

They walked beside one another through the forest; hands still intertwined. This time Byakuya was the one to start a conversation.

"Rukia...I never had the chance to say this earlier, but...I'm sorry for making you worry so much after I had vanished. I didn't know you'd be effected that badly by my disappearance." Byakuya explained.

"It's okay. I'm just thankful you're okay." Rukai said, before she felt Byakuya squeeze her hand gently. She looked up at him and gave him a soft smile, which made him gain a small smile to match her own.

–

Byakuya and Rukia were now sitting on the green grass of a tall hillside, only about a ten minute walk from where the apples were located, with an apple in hand and four more that Byakuya had sat beside him for Rukia and him to have later on.

"It's a good thing you remembered where this spot was, I know I would have never been able to remember." Rukia said with a small laugh after taking another bite from her apple.

Byakuya smiled, "Remembering how to get here isn't that difficult."

"How do you remember?"

Byakuya smiled and moved closer to her and placed the side of his face near Rukia's to get a perspective from her point of view. He then lifted his arm to point out ahead of them.

"Now what do you see?" He asked.

Rukia looked to were Byakuya was pointing and she saw something that looked like a giant rock. The then noticed a familiar entrance that led into the 'rock' that she recognized with a small gasp.

"It's the cave!" Rukia exclaimed with a smile.

Byakuya's smile turned into a small grin, amused at Rukia's excitement at discovering they could see the cave from this hillside.

"Correct." He says before tilting his head to kiss her on her neck and then playfully biting the same spot, making Rukia squeak in surprise.

She turned her face to look at him, seeing that his grin was still clear on his face; making her face become a shade pinker. Rukia saw an emotion in his eyes that she had never seen him show before, but she recognized it. It was the same emotion Kaien Shiba always had when he was talking to or about his wife, Miyako Shiba. It was love, which made Rukia lose her expression of surprise to smile back at him. Her eyes reflecting the same amount of love that showed in his.

Byakuya placed his hand softly on her cheek, which she immediately leaned into. He then leaned in and placed his lips on hers and she kissed him back. She felt his tongue on her lips, asking for entrance. She happily obliged, letting his tongue explore her mouth. It sent sparks through the both of them as their tongues battled for dominance.

They pulled away when the need for air became too great. Byakuya rested his forehead on hers as they stared at one another, gasping softly for air.

–

Senbonzakura walked silently down one of the corridors of Muramasa's hideout for the Zanpakutou. After he had heard about Muramasa's recent battle with Kurosaki Ichigo's inner hollow, in order to release his true instincts at first, he had started doubting Muramasa's plan of action. He at least thought Muramasa would have known better to try to release that mad man's inner instincts. It should have been obvious that he was already expressing them.

Even if Muramasa didn't notice that, Senbonzakura still thought of him a fool for even wasting his time against him in the first place. He was beginning to feel that Sode no Shirayuki had been right in her doubts about Muramasa.

Sode no Shirayuki walked out of a nearby room, she looked to her left to see Senbonzakura approaching her.

"Follow me." Senbonzakura said before he continued walking.

She gave a single nod before following him to wherever he was headed.

–

Senbonzakura led Sode no Shirayki out of the fortress to a secluded, private area that only he knew about.

"Where are we?" Sode no Shirayuki asked.

"I found this place recently, I'm the only one that knows about it." Senbonzakura replied simply.

"Okay. Why are we here then?"

"After hearing of Muramasa's recent fight I've started to doubt his plans."

Sode no Shirayuki's eyes widened, "I haven't heard about any recent battles. Especially none that Muramasa had been in."

"The reason you haven't been getting informed of anything recent is that Muramasa probably knows that you're doubting his actions and would try to speak up to convince the others to turn against him."

"That's likely the reason." Sode no Shirayuki said. "What are we going to do?"

Senbonzakura turned before he made his way over to her and leaned over to whisper something in her ear. Sode no Shirayuki's expression turns serious before she looked him in the eyes.

"I understand."

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's chapter seven! I hope you all enjoyed. Ooo, I wonder what Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki's plans are? Guess you'll all find out soon! **

**I'm glad I was able to get this chapter typed up this quick. I'll try to have chapter eight typed up soon and posted as soon as possible.**

**Remember, Read and Review!**

**Just Remember NO FLAMING!**


	8. Chapter 8

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Eight~**

Rukia's eyes slowly began to open, the first thing she noticed was that it was early morning because she could tell that the sun had barely even begun to rise yet. _'Wait...Wasn't I in the cave sleeping? Why am I outside?' _Rukia thought in confusion.

She then realized she was securely wrapped up in Byakuya's captains haori. Rukia felt that she was being carried as well. She looked up to see Byakuya, staring straight ahead of him as he walked through the forest.

"Where are we going?" Rukia asked tiredly.

Byakuya looked down at her, "We're going back to the Seireitei. I wanted you to get a full nights sleep so that's why I didn't wake you to let you know we were leaving."

"Oh." Rukia said before she snuggled her head against Byakuya's chest.

"We'll stop and rest in an hour or so." Byakuya said after giving her a gently squeeze.

"Okay." Rukia said, letting a small smile appear on her face.

–

True to his word, Byakuya stopped walking after an hour so they could stop and take a small break. Rukia sat up with her back against a tree while Byakuya was lying down on Rukia's left, with his head rested comfortably in her lap. He had his eyes closed as he rested and relaxed his tired muscles that had become sore from running around so much in only a short time.

"Rukia, I'm glad you're alright." Byakuya stated after a moment of silence had passed.

Rukia hadn't been paying attention at that moment and hadn't snapped back to reality until she heard him speak, "What was that?"

Byakuya smiled softly before reaching over and taking Rukia's right ankle before gently pulling her to the ground so that he was now above her. His hand on either side of her face, propped up by his arms and knees.

He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I said that I was glad you're alright."

Byakuya then lightly kissed a trail from under her ear down to her neck before he moved back up and kissed her on the lips, which she replied to by kissing him back.

Rukia didn't know how to describe her feelings when Byakuya had started kissing her. She couldn't think straight as she kissed him back with an equal amount of love and, she almost couldn't believe what she was thinking, desire.

Byakuya had never felt like he was feeling as he kissed her. Never in his life had he felt this happy. Yes, he had loved and still loved Hisana, but with Rukia, he felt more alive, it felt more real, and he knew he never wanted those feelings to go away. He knew if something were to ever happen to Rukia, his world would fall apart and never be the same ever again; it had taken him awhile to realize this, but he now knew it for a fact and swore to himself he would protect her and keep her safe for as long as he lived.

They soon had to pull away, the need for air becoming too great. Byakuya let himself lay down to Rukia's left, half of his body resting directly on Rukia. He moved down to nuzzle his face to her neck and closed his eyes. His left arm was around her waist, hugging her closely to him. Rukia had her left hand on Byakuya's head, gently running her fingers through his hair, while her other was rested on the back of his neck.

–

Ichigo, Renji, and Ukitake sat in the Fourth Division gardens discussing Rukia's disappearance.

"Rukia's been gone for days now, I'm starting to think we should start a search." Ichigo explained to Ukitake.

"Yeah," Renji agreed, "I'm well aware that Rukia is strong and doesn't our protection, but this situation is different. Her injuries were pretty severe and she had left before most of them were healed...I know she's worried about Kuchiki-taicho, but I don't think she was thinking straight when she ran off; she didn't take her injuries into consideration when she left. If she weren't injured it would be a different matter..."

Silence passed between the three of them once Renji had finished speaking. Ichigo and Renji noticed Ukitake looked like he was in deep thought, but after a short moment he looked back up at them.

Ukitake sighed, "I agree, with her injuries as bad as they were, she's been gone for far too long." He then looked at Renji, "Like you said, if she weren't injured it would be different."

"So what's the plan?" Ichigo asked.

"I'll send out a search squad tomorrow and you two can accompany them if you want." Ukitake replied.

"Alright, we will." Ichigo said, giving a single nod.

–

Around noon, Byakuya and Rukia emerged from the forest. Rukia stretched her arms above her head before relaxing them. Rukia looked over to Byakuya, giving him a happy smile. Byakuya couldn't help but smile back before making his way over to her so they were standing closer to each other.

"Looks like we're finally back." Rukia said.

"Yes, we're definitely back." Byakuya agreed before his expression turned serious, "Remember, stay with me at all times."

"Don't worry, I will. I haven't forgotten."

Byakuya made his move to start walking again, but before he could get anywhere Rukia's arm shot out and her hand grabbed the end of his sleeve. Byakuya looked down in slight surprise at Rukia, who was staring at the ground with her grip on his sleeve still tight.

"What's wrong?" Byakuya asked in concern.

Rukia muttered something in reply, but Byakuya couldn't understand what she had said, "What was that?" He asked.

"Please...Don't disappear again." Rukia repeated, her gaze still on the ground.

Byakuya's eyes widened before he turned to her and used his fingers to lift her head to face him. When Rukia was forced to look at him her eyes, that were slightly watery, widened when she saw his how serious his expression was.

Byakuya didn't speak until he was sure he had her full attention, "Rukia, I _swear_ to you," Byakuya then held up his left hand and Rukia's eyes widened when she saw a scar on his palm from when he had pulled her out of the way of Gin Ichimaru's blade's attack that would've killed her, "I _swear_ to you, by this hand that I will always be there to protect you and that I will _never_ leave you again."

Byakuya then pulled Rukia into a tight yet protective embrace before he felt her tears wetting his shihakusho. Rukia clutched onto him tightly, hiding her face in his robes. Byakuya held onto her a few moments longer before tilting her head up to wipe away what remained of her tears, drying her face. He then lowered his head and kissed her softly on the lips.

When he pulled away Rukia looked up at him and smiled softly, making him smile as well.

Byakuya placed his hand gently on Rukia's cheek, "We should get going." He said calmly.

"Okay." Rukia said, giving a single nod.

They both then started on their way back to the Seireitei, side by side.

–

"Hey Ichigo, I know I never mentioned this before, but I'm glad you came to help." Renji said, "Even if it makes you a complete idiot since you weren't supposed to come her in the first place."

Ichigo chuckled, "Well I had to come, if I hadn't who would help defeat Muramasa? You probably wouldn't be able to put two scratches on him."

Renji's eye twitched slightly, "What'd you just say!?" He asked angrily.

"Oh you know what I said." Ichigo responded.

Right when they were about to jump at one another Ukitake walked out into the gardens, where they were sitting, holding a tray of tea.

"Either of you want-" Ukitake then realized what was going on between the two, "Did I come at a bad time?"

–

Byakuya and Rukia were about an hours walk away from the Fourth Division, where they had planned to go to so they could report in to let everyone know they were okay. After they took a few more steps, Byakuya stopped walking before using shun po to stand directly in front of Rukia, facing her. Rukia was about to question him, but before she could utter a single word Byakuya lifted her over his shoulder and used shun po once more.

When Rukia got her focus back she felt Byakuya place her down on something soft. She looked around at her surroundings to see they were in the Kuchiki Manor; more specifically Byakuya's room. She blushed slightly when she realized he had sat her down on his bed.

Rukia turned her attention to Byakuya, who was sitting down next to her on her left. "Why are we here?" She asked.

"Before we go to the Fourth Division I'd like for us to just have at least a few more hours privacy." He replied calmly.

Byakuya then laid back on the bed, closing his eyes. Rukia, who was still a bit nervous about being in his room, stayed sitting up; not knowing what she should do.

Byakuya cracked an eye open, looking up at Rukia, before sighing. "Rukia, lay down and relax. It's okay."

Rukia nodded nervously before slowly scooting down next to him, laying her head on his chest and wrapping her arms over his waist. She then felt Byakuya's arm that was under her wrap around her waist, holding her closely to him.

"Has any part of the mansion been destroyed?" Rukia asked.

"There were numerous parts that were destroyed, but most of the debris seems to have been cleaned up and besides us being here; the mansion is completely deserted." Byakuya replied.

_'Hmm, that's probably why it's not too light in the room. The lighting system must have been destroyed during the Zanpakutou's first attack.' _Rukia thought to herself.

–

Byakuya emerged from the bathroom, that was a room attached to his own, clean and dressed in a non-tattered shihakusho. He was softly drying his now damp hair with a towel. Rukia, who was still in her torn and bloodied shihakusho, was seated on the bed as he made his way over to her.

"The water still works, so you can take shower if you'd like." Byakuya told her.

Rukia was about to say yes to his offer, but she stopped and looked down at her clothing, realizing that was all she had unless she went down the hall to her room. When she looked back up Byakuya was gone, she looked around and was about to call for him until she heard door close behind her. She turned around to see Byakuya walking towards her with something in his hands. When he was closer she quickly realized it was another one of her shihakushos.

"Use my shower." Byakuya told her as he handed her her clothes.

"Okay, thanks." Rukia said before quickly getting off the bed and going into his bathroom to shower.

When she came out from the bathroom she saw Byakuya lying on the bed with his eyes closed, even though she knew he wasn't sleeping but instead patiently waiting on her. Rukia silently made made her way over to him and quietly crawled onto the bed to cuddle up beside him until he was ready to go report to the Fourth Division.

She felt an arm around her waist when she had gotten over to him to lay down. Byakuya turned on his side to face her and pulled her closely to him in a possessive but gently hold before comfortably resting his head on the top of hers, taking in the fresh scent of her now clean hair.

Rukia was about to drift off to sleep after a few moments had passed, but she woke up when Byakuya spoke.

"Do you have anymore injuries?" Byakuya asked.

Rukia shook her head, "Nothing but a few scratches."

"Let me see."

Rukia blushed slightly, "Why?"

"I'm going to heal them, it doesn't matter how small they are." Byakuya answered before he slowly sat up and stared down at her, waiting on her to reply.

Rukia waited a moment after Byakuya had sat up to slowly sit up herself. She knew he wasn't kidding and that he really didn't want her to have a single scratch on her no matter how small it was.

Byakuya could tell Rukia was a little nervous about this so he leaned over and lightly kissed her before saying, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about."

Rukia nodded before slowly reaching up to the top part of her shihakusho that covered her shoulder, but when she touched the fabric she hesistated. Byakuya, sensing her obvious nervousness, carefully took her hand from her shoulder before gently guiding it to push his own robes down, exposing his torso which made Rukia blush. He then guided her hand to a small cut that was located near the bottom left side of his stomach.

When Rukia saw the cut she immediately used her kidou to fully heal it, she silently guess that the reason it was still there was because he had used most of his power to heal his own wounds and then her leg after he had found her.

Byakuya smiled at her immediate reaction to heal his wound even though it was just a simple cut that was healing just fine on its own. He then allowed Rukia to look him over and heal anything she thought was an injury. Her examination lasted about ten minutes from what Byakuya could tell, he almost regretted not having a few more scratches on him because he was enjoying the feel of her fingers on his skin.

Rukia felt a little more confident now that Byakuya had let her heal his injuries. She was also grateful that he was being patient when her, waiting until she felt comfortable enough form him to do what she had just done to him. She took a breath before reaching up to push her robes down partly, exposing her left shoulder down to the top of her breasts. She had lowered the back of her shihakusho enough to expose her entire back and also exposed as much of her stomach as she could without exposing her entire torso.

Byakuya smiled at her softly, "It's alright. I promise I won't do anything bad."

Rukia smiled, "I know."

Byakuya was careful and gentle when examining her and healing any wounds he saw. She had more scratchs and small cuts than he had had, which he didn't like, but he was thankful she didn't have another wound like she had had on her leg.

Byakuya had taken longer looking Rukia over than she had taken to look at him. He wanted to be absolutely sure he hadn't missed any scratches or cuts. She had allowed him to roll her pants leg up to heal anything he saw there before rolling them down again.

As soon as he was finished healing a small scratch on her back he wrapped an arm around her bare waist and pulled her down, making Rukia clutch the front of her shihakusho tighter. When they were both lying down Byakuya's arm was still around her waist as he pulled her closely to him before resting his chin comfortably on her shoulder. Rukia blushed when she felt her bare back against his bare chest.

"I-I thought you said you wouldn't do anything bad..." Rukia stuttered.

Byakuya smirked, "This isn't bad," He clutched her tighter, "It's actually quite the opposite."

After that Rukia didn't say anything, she just relaxed in his hold. She didn't dare doze off though, since the only thing covering her chest was her shihakusho that she held to it. About twenty minutes later Rukia clutched her shihakusho tighter before carefully turning over to rest her head against Byakuya's chest. Once they were both comfortably situated Byakuya wrapped his arm securely around her before closing his eyes.

"We'll head out to the Fourth Division soon." Byakuya said quietly.

He felt Rukia nod once against his chest, "Okay." She answered softly.

–

Ichigo sat in one of the rooms of the Fourth Division staring at Zabimaru with a slightly confused expression. Zabimaru's female half, the baboon, was lying down on her side. Her eyes were closed and she was propped up on her elbow. Zabimaru's male half, the snake, sat against the wall with his arms and legs crossed, staring back at Ichigo with a smirk.

Chimpette, as the snake half called her, opened her eyes to see Ichigo staring oddly at them, "What's up with you?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh? Oh it's nothing. I just remember awhile back ago though...weren't you two, you know...both male?"

Snakey, as Chimpette called the snake-like child, busted out into laughter at Chimpette as she grew angry at his question.

"What was that?" She asked angrily; she couldn't believe the kid would ask such a rude question.

Ichigo held up his hands in apology, "Hey, sorry. Sorry."

Before Chimpette had time to jump at him, Renji, Ukitake, and Unohana walked into the room.

Renji, seeing Chimpette ready to tear out Ichigo's throat and Snakey on the ground laughing, looked at Ichigo and asked, "What'd you do?" Renji asked before his eyes widened slightly, "You didn't call her a hairy chick did you?"

Snakey's laughter only increased at Renji's last question.

"Shut up!" Chimpette commanded, glaring at Snakey.

She was about to turn and yell at Renji, but suddenly the ground started to shake, which they all knew meant a serious and big fight was going on nearby.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's chapter eight for you all. Sorry if some moments seemed either stupid or OOC. It's almost two-thirty in the morning as I type this out. So I'm pretty tired. I'll try to have chapter nine up earlier next Saturday. Also sorry I could not really describe Zabimaru too well, though hopefully most of you have been watching the Zanpakutou Arc and know. If not there's a link to my photobucket account on my profile and I keep screencaps from each episode of the arc there. So just click Zabimaru's folder and check them out.  
**

**That reminds me, before I forget here's something for all you readers and reviewers to help me decide. When I got to writing out chapter thirteen of this story I got to a point that involves a difficult choice. It's at a point where a lemon would really happen at. I'm going to let you all decide if it should be added and this story change ratings or not. BUT before anyone thinks I'm just trying to throw a lemon into the story just to be there I'm not. The lemon actually comes in at a point where it would make complete sense for it to be there and would probably help the story easier for me to write...I guess. xD**

**So I must ask, Lemon or No Lemon? Please respond, the more responses I get to this means the more writing I can get done. **

**Just leave your vote in a review. Voting will end when chapter nine is released.**

**So Remember To Review And Vote!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	9. Chapter 9

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Nine~**

Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki stood in the Kuchiki Manor's gardens after having attacked the building only moments ago. They stood side by side as they watched Byakuya, who had sensed the attack as he and Rukia were leaving, land on his feet after dodging the attack. He had grabbed Rukia at the last second before the attack had hit them, he had his arms wrapped securely around her waist while Rukia's arms were wrapped tightly around his neck.

When Byakuya noticed Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki his grip on Rukia instinctively tightened before taking a step back. He wasn't going to allow them to cause her any harm. Rukia looked up at Byakuya, who wore an angered expression. She could tell he was ready to fight if he had to, and she knew that was probably what would happen. Rukia looked ahead at Sode no Shirayuki and Senbonzakura, wondering if Byakuya would allow her to fight too. She didn't want him to worry about defeating the both of them while constantly worrying about her safety, even though she also knew he'd worry about that regardless.

Senbonzakura formed his blade, prepared for battle; Sode no Shirayuki stayed put beside him.

"Kuchiki Byakuya, draw your sword." Senbonzakura said.

Byakuya glared at Senbonzakura for a moment before he took on of his arms from around Rukia to draw his sword.

Rukia looked up at him, "Byakuya, I'll fight too. We'll have a better chance that way."

She felt his hand clutch her robes tightly before she felt him lift her up with his arm to plant a soft kiss on her head.

"Remember to stay in my sight and please...be careful." Byakuya whispered. He then loosened his grip before setting her back on her feet; reluctantly letting her go.

Rukia drew her sword as well, letting them know she was ready to fight too. Senbonzakura then vanished, but soon reappeared in front of Byakuya and tried to strike him with his sword but Byakuya quickly blocked his attack. Rukia moved out of their way before looking to Sode no Shirayuki, who was making no moves to attack but simply watching Rukia.

"Why aren't you attacking?" Rukia asked.

"We have no reason to fight. Our battle has already been fought." Sode no Shirayuki responded.

Rukia's eyes widened slightly before she turned to look back to see how Byakuya was doing.

Senbonzakura dodged another quick strike from Byakuya before making a swift turn in attempt to slash Byakuya, but Byakuya countered it and then jumped back when Senbonzakura tried to attack him again. Senbonzakura thrust his sword forward at once Byakuya had landed; Byakuya couldn't move too far away in time and the right side of his face was cut.

Senbonzakura then made another attack but Byakuya blocked it. They clashed blades multiple times before Byakuya jumped back. When he landed he used shun po to get behind Senbonzakura.

"Hadou number four, Byakurai." Byakuya chanted, pointing his finger at Senbonzakura to fire his attack.

Byakuya's kido had caused an explosion, spreading dust and dirt everywhere. Rukia and Sode no Shirayuki had to shut their eyes and hold their stance to keep from getting blown back or getting dirt in their eyes.

"Byakuya!" Rukia shouted, wondering if he was alright.

When the dust cleared Rukia could see Senbonzakura, who now had a large crack running up his mask and Byakuya, who had blood running down his head.

"Scatter!" Senbonzakura commanded and his blade immediately started to scatter into it's thousands of blades.

Byakuya used shun po to dodge the blades, his right arm getting cut in the process. The blades came at Byakuya once more and he quickly took off his haori and threw it out in front of himself to slow the approaching blades, buying himself enough time to get away unharmed.

Rukia could only watch in horror as Byakuya, who could do nothing but dodge the blades. It was bringing back too many memories of the last incident not too many days ago. She didn't want to interrupt his fight to go help him, but she knew if things started to look like they were getting bad she would jump in and help him.

Byakuya could see Rukia watching him worriedly. For a moment he wondered why Sode no Shirayuki wasn't trying to fight her, but his thoughts were interrupted by Senbonzakura's attack.

"Hadou number four, Byakurai." Byakuya chanted again, after dodging Senbonzakura's last attack.

Senbonzakura dodged, and Byakuya's eyes widened when he realized Senbonzakura had been standing in front of Rukia and the attack would be a direct hit if she stayed put. Luckily, Rukia used shun po to get out of the way of the blast.

Sode no Shirayuki had moved too, appearing beside Rukia. Rukia quickly moved back and took a defensive stance, thinking Sode no Shirayuki had decided to fight. She quickly turned around though when she heard another one of Byakuya's kido blasts. Sode no Shirayuki turned towards the blast as well, her eyes widened. Rukia saw that this attack had been much stronger. _'He must have taken the time to chant the incantation to strengthen his attack.' _Rukia guessed silently.

As the dust cleared, it was clear that Byakuya had caught himself in his own attack, as he was bleeding a little heavily now, and was obviously becoming exhausted; looking as if he would fall over at any moment. Senbonzakura stood a couple feet in front of him, breathing heavily. His mask cracked once more before falling off, breaking in half the moment it hit the ground.

Rukia rushed over to Byakuya, to allow him to use her as a support to keep him standing. Byakuya saw Rukia quickly approaching him and he wanted to tell her to stay back, but when he tried to speak she was already putting his arm around her shoulders and her arm around his waist to hold him up.

When they both looked up to face Senbonzakura, Sode no Shirayuki stood at his side, holding the broken halves of his mask. They both noticed Senbonzakura greatly resembled Byakuya in a way. The main differences being his longer and different colored hair and the color of his eyes. He had a small streak of blood dripping from his face from where Byakuya had attacked him.

Rukia's hold on Byakuya tightened protectively around him even though she knew she wouldn't stand a chance against Senbonzakura, but she would fight him to keep Byakuya safe if she had to. Byakuya tried to take a step in front of Rukia, but Senbonzakura held up his hand; motioning for Byakuya to stop before he put away his sword.

"Our battle is over, go take care of your injuries." Senbonzakura stated calmly.

Byakuya and Rukia now both held confused expressions, Sode no Shirayuki then started speaking.

"Once your wounds are healed, we will assist you both in defeating Muramasa."

Both Rukia and Byakuya's eyes widened slightly, "What?" Rukia asked, unsure that Sode no Shirayuki had just said what she had.

"I said that we will help you against Muramasa." Sode no Shirayuki simply repeated.

"Wh-"

"Muramasa's ways of actions are wrong. We've come to our senses and want this rebellion to end." Sode no Shirayuki continued.

"None of the other zanpakutou know we've left, including Muramasa." Senbonzakura added, in the same calm tone.

Sode no Shirayuki nodded before saying to Rukia, "We'll explain more later, but first you need to take care of him."

Rukia looked at Byakuya worriedly, she couldn't carry him to the Fourth Division on her own and even with help from Sode no Shirayuki or Senbonzakura, it would still take too long to get there. _'I'll take him back inside.'_ Rukia decided silently.

–

Rukia carefully helped Byakuya back inside the mansion and into his bedroom so he could lie down. Sode no Shirayuki and Senbonzakura followed them inside.

Once Byakuya had gotten himself comfortable with Rukia's help, He had helped her undo the top of his shihakusho, leaving his torso exposed, so Rukia could help clean and heal his wounds.

Rukia turned to Sode no Shirayuki, "Can you please bring me a wet and dry towel to clean some of this blood?"

Sode no Shirayuki nodded and walked into the bathroom to get what Rukia had asked for. She returned a moment later with the towels Rukia had asked for.

After Rukia had cleaned the blood away and healed Byakuya's wounds, she helped him back into his shihakusho. When it was back on Byakuya gave her a warm smile. "Thank you, Rukia."

Rukia blushed slightly before smiling back and kindly saying, "It was no problem."

Byakuya reached over and took her hand gently in his own, making Rukia's smile grow.

"So what ne-huh?" Rukia look up towards the door when she started hearing voices from down the hallway. Byakuya, Senbonzakura, and Sode no Shirayuki heard them too and looked towards the door.

--

"Did that explosion really come from here?" One voice asked.

"I'm positive it did, there's no way it would have come from anywhere else." The second voice replied.

"Maybe you heard Chimpette when she ran into the door? That was pretty lou-Ow!" A third voice cut in.

"I only ran into the door because _you _tried to play a prank and run away after wards, you should of known I'd chase you!" A fourth voice yelled angrily.

--

Rukia looked at Byakuya in confusion as they listened to the conversation of the approaching voices. Byakuya looked back at her with equal confusion. Senbonzakura just blinked while Sode no Shirayuki sighed and shook her head slowly.

–

"Hey look an open door!" The first voice said.

"Let's go check it out." The second voice replied.

The footsteps then became faster, signaling they were running.

"Hey, wait up!" The third voice yelled before it's footsteps increased too.

"Snakey, Don't run start running so suddenly!" The fourth voice exclaimed before running too.

–

When the voices were only a few steps from the door Byakuya let his expression fix into his usual emotionless and icy one, but he didn't let go of Rukia's hand.

Ichigo and Renji then ran into the room, closely followed by Zabimaru. Ichigo and Renji quickly noticed Byakuya and Rukia.

"B-Byakuya!? Rukia!?" Ichigo exclaimed.

"Taicho?! Rukia! You're both here!" Renji said in surprise.

"What business do you have here? Barging into my room unannounced like you did..." Byakuya asked, using his normal tone. "Even if the mansion is partly destroyed it still gives you no right."

Rukia suppressed a smirk, knowing Byakuya was only being partially serious; he was mainly just messing with them.

"Ah, um...well...we were t-told to come check out the explosion and stuff-" Renji nervously tired to explain, but Ichigo interrupted.

"Where the hell have you guys been all this time?" Ichigo asked, but he then noticed Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki. "And what are those two doing here?"

"We've been recovering from our injuries that would've made it difficult to get to the Fourth Division." Rukia replied, answering Ichigo's first question.

"And Senbonzakura and I are here to help defeat Muramasa. We've broken his control over us on on our own will." Sode no Shirayuki added.

"Yes, and Byakuya and I just recently arrived back, but we decided to stop here first. Then a few hours later Sode no Shirayuki and Senbonzakura appeared." Rukia explained.

"You should head back to the Fourth Division. Rukia and I will be there later on." Byakuya said.

"Bu-..." Renji stopped himself. He could tell Byakuya was serious and that it wasn't a request; it was an order. "Are you sure?"

Byakuya replied with a single nod.

"Yes sir." Renji nodded before turning to Ichigo, "Come on, we're leaving."

"Aww, that was boring!" Snakey complained as he and Chimpette followed Renji and Ichigo out of the room.

–

Once Renji, Ichigo, and Zabimaru were gone and out of the mansion, Rukia looked over at Byakuya.

"When are we going to leave for the Fourth Division?" Rukia asked.

Byakuya pulled Rukia down to sit next to him on the bed before looking back at her, "We'll leave whenever you're ready."

Rukia couldn't help but give a small smile, "I think it would be best if you rested a little more."

"Alright." Byakuya replied, giving a small smile.

"Sode no Shirayuki and I will go scout the area around the manor until you leave." Senbonzakura said.

Byakuya's expression turned serious for a moment to give Senbonzakura a single nod to let him know he understood and had heard him before turning back to Rukia and letting his expression soften again.

Senbonzakura then motioned to Sode no Shirayuki that they were leaving. Sode no Shirayuki gave a nod before she followed him out of the room and then the manor so they could scout the area for any signs of danger or other shinigami.

After a moment of silence had passed, Sode no Shirayuki turned to Senbonzakura, "When do you think Muramasa will strike?" She asked.

"It won't be long...Muramasa has been unable to fight for long periods of time before becoming weak and looks as if he'll start fading away. He won't be able to go on much longer if that continues to occur. It's possible that the reason for that is because is wielder is dead." Senbonzakura explained.

Sode no Shirayuki nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, I've noticed that as well."

–

Back inside the manor Rukia was sitting up on the bed, resting her back against some pillows and the headboard. Byakuya was lying down with his arms wrapped around Rukia's waist in an embrace while his head rested on her side, his eyes were closed and his soft breathing meant he was asleep. Rukia was treading her fingers gently and slowly treading her fingers through his hair, a warm smile on her face.

_'I wish moments like these would happen more often...they're just so peaceful and it's feels great just to relax.'_ Rukia thought happily. She knew Byakuya probably felt the same way, he worked so hard every day and she knew he had to enjoy getting moments to relax when they came.

Rukia then sighed quietly, _' I wonder how Byakuya plans on telling the elders about us once the rebellions over...'_ To be completely honest, Rukia felt a little frightened by the thought, but she wouldn't let him be alone when he faced them. She hoped the others would understand and come to accept Byakuya and her being together and would remembered that they weren't truly related.

–

Byakuya didn't sleep long, only for about twenty minutes before he slowly started to wake up. He slid up from his laying position to kiss Rukia on the neck. He smiled when he heard her giggle slightly at the sudden contact between his lips and her neck. He then continued, kissing her neck again before making a slow trail up.

"We should get ready to head out soon." Byakuya said between kisses. He then looked up at her; waiting for an answer.

Rukia nodded, "Okay."

Byakuya slowly and reluctantly got off the bed, Rukia getting up a moment later. Once she was on her feet she made her way over to Byakuya, who was standing next to the door, waiting on her, before leaving the manor with him.

–

When they were outside, Senbonzakura appeared ahead of them. He approached them before he spoke.

"Muramasa still doesn't know that I've joined forces with the shinigami. It would be best if I head back so I can gather any information that may come to be of use. I'll report back if I hear anything of importance." Senbonzakura explained. "Sode no Shirayuki will stay here with you, she is not entirely trusted by Muramasa anymore and doesn't get informed of anything important." Senbonzakura added when Sode no Shirayuki appeared beside him.

Senbonzakura glanced at her before turning his attention back to Byakuya and Rukia. "I should get going before I'm spotted. I hope you both trust that I will come back and not betray you." He then turned his back, ready to walk away. "My return should be guaranteed though, since I'm leaving Sode no Shirayuki in your hands." He added before disappearing, already on his way back.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Let's get the apology over with, I'm SO SO SO sorry I couldn't get this up last week. If you don't read my journals on Deviantart or talk to me on Club Bleach or Bleach Asylum I'll explain now. I've been having a lot of problems lately. Mainly with school and I've been arguing with my mother a lot. I've also been having drama practice after school for an upcoming competition. I had it today too and I would've had it up earlier if I hadn't of had to go. Though I can't help but go since competition is Friday. **

**Which reminds me, I'm going to get Chapter Ten up earlier...or at least try to since I won't be home on Friday until like...nine at night. So I'm going to try to have it up Thursday or have most of it typed up. Though I can't make any promises it will actually be up on Thursday. **

**Now what you've all been waiting for. Poll results! I'll bet that's one of the main things that was being anticipated. Well wait no longer! The results are in:**

**Lemon: Nineteen Votes**

**No Lemon: Two Votes**

**Wow, we LOVE our lemons~**

**I'll work hard to meet everyones expectations, so no worries.**

**Remember to Read And Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!  
**


	10. Chapter 10

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Ten~**

Byakuya, Rukia , Sode no Shirayuki walked into Unohana's meeting room where Ukitake, Shunsui, Renji, Ichigo, Zabimaru, and Unohana herself all were. Zabimaru was standing against the wall while the others were seated at the table.

"What took you guys so long?" Ichigo asked.

The only reply that was given was an icy glare from Byakuya.

"Welcome back, it's good to see that you're both okay." Ukitake said, smiling.

"Yes, we're glad you're both alright." Unohana said, smiling softly. "If you don't mind, would you both come with me to an examination room a few doors down? Just so I can take care of any injuries that still need to be taken care of."

"Alright." Rukia said, giving a small nod. Byakuya just nodded, letting Unohana know they didn't mind.

–

"Is your right leg alright, Kuchiki-san?" Unohana asked once they were in the examination room.

"I healed it as much as I could manage, but it still needs to be properly looked at." Byakuya answered before Rukia could say anything.

Unohana nodded, "Kuchiki-san, please take a seat on the table there." She said, pointing over to the small examination table.

Rukia obliged and took a seat on the table. Unohana carefully rolled up the leg of Rukia's shihakusho and easily healed whatever looked like was in need of healing.

"Are there any other injuries you or Kuchiki-san have that need to be looked at?" Unohana asked Byakuya as she was finishing with Rukia's leg.

"All of are other injuries were minor and we were able to heal them on the spot. Rukia's leg was all that needed to be looked at." Byakuya replied.

–

In the meeting room, Sode no Shirayuki stood by the door; waiting on Byakuya and Rukia to return. There was nothing but silence in the room since they didn't want to discuss anything until Unohana, Byakuya, and Rukia got back.

After a few more moments Unohana, Rukia, and Byakuya walked in. Unohana sat in her usual spot at the end of the table. Byakuya sat down next to Ukitake and Rukia took a seat in the chair next to Byakuya.

Now that they were seated, Ukitake turned to Byakuya and asked the question that was on everyone's minds.

"If you don't mind telling us, what happened?"

"I was unable to come back earlier because I was too badly injured and I had used most of my strength to get away from Senbonzakura's last attack." Byakuya answered in his usual monotone.

"Where did that guy go anyway and why is she," Snakey pointed to Sode no Shirayuki, "still here?" He interrupted.

"Muramasa and the other zanpakutou are unaware that Senbonzakura has switched sides. He's acting as if he's still with them when really he'll be reporting any useful information or plans that Muramasa may scheme." Byakuya explained.

"That's good. We'll have time to prepare for a fight when the time comes then." Shunsui said, smiling. "But how do we know that Senbonzakura isn't just telling Muramasa our plans to stop him?" He questioned.

"Senbonzakura isn't the type to go back on his word," Sode no Shirayuki said, her expression showing she was telling the truth, "you can all trust him."

Ukitake, Shunsui, and Unohana looked over to Byakuya, who only gave a single nod to assure them that Sode no Shirayuki wasn't lying.

"That's good then." Unohana said, smiling before looking over to Rukia, "And I speak for all of us Kuchiki-san, when I say that we're glad you're alright. When you disappeared like that so suddenly it had us all worried., but it's all behind us now that Kuchiki-taicho and you have returned and are unharmed."

Rukia smiled, "Yes, I'm sorry for worrying everyone like I did. I'm glad to be back though."

Unohana smiled at Rukia before turning to look over to Byakuya, "If you didn't know already, Kuchiki-taicho; I had some of the Fourth Division clean up the debris from the Kuchiki Manor. The only parts that are destroyed are the main entrance and dining room."

"I noticed, thank you for taking the time to clean it up even though you were busy with taking care of the injured." Byakuya said. "Rukia and I will be staying there since the wing where our rooms are located are still in tact. That way the Fourth Division will have more room. We will report back when we're needed."

"That will be fine" Unohana said before turning to Ukitake and Shunsui, "It would probably be best to wait until Senbonzakura reports back before making any serious decisions."

"That will probably best." Ukitake said. Shunsui nodded in agreement.

"Unohana-taicho, do you want or need Ichigo and me to do anything?" Renji asked.

"Just continue with helping our everyone like you've been doing and you'll both be informed if any specific help is needed." Unohana answered.

"Is there anymore questions?" Ukitake asked and waited for anyone to speak up. When nobody did he continued, "Alright then, everyone can go back to their quarters or to what they were doing. We'll call you when needed."

"Come, Rukia." Byakuya said once he had stood up. Rukia nodded and followed him out of the room with Sode no Shirayuki following close behind.

–

Bakuya and Rukia were walking back to the Kuchiki Manor. After a moment Byakuya reached over and gently took Rukia's hand into his own, making Rukia smile.

Rukia turned her head to look behind her at Sode no Shirayuki, "What are the other zanpakutou like?" She asked.

Sode no Shirayuki gave a small smile before replying, "I've never really talked to the others, only Senbonzakura. Not many of the other zanpakutou seemed to get along too well, mainly Tobiume and Haineko. They were always fighting for Hyorinmaru's attention." She explained, "Senbonzakura and I never really talked to the others unless we were spoken to. We really only spoke to each other."

"None of them got along?" Rukia asked, slightly surprised.

"Yes, some like Hyorinmaru and Senbonzakura are silent types, keeping to themselves most of the time while some talked frequently but never really getting into conversations." Sode no Shirayuki explained.

"You and Senbonzakura are pretty close aren't you?" Rukia asked, smiling softly.

"Yes," Sode no Shirayuki smiled, "It's hard not to become close after all the years together. Especially since you two were becoming closer and closer as time passed as well."

Rukia smiled and looked up at Byakuya, who was looking down at her with a matching smile. Rukia gripped his hand tighter after feeling him gently squeeze it only seconds before.

–

When they arrived back home Rukia turned to Sode no Shirayuki, "You can stay in my room if you want. It won't be any problem."

"Alright." Sode no Shirayuki said, giving a kind smile.

"We should find something to eat." Byakuya said.

"What are we going to eat?" Rukia asked, looking up at him.

"We'll find something in the kitchen."

–

In the kitchen, Byakuya and Rukia were looking through the cabinets in attempt to find anything that didn't require cooking to eat. Earlier, Sode no Shirayuki had kindly declined a meal, telling them she wasn't hungry before heading to Rukia's room.

Rukia looked through the lower cabinets while Byakuya searched through the higher ones. As Rukia searched an idea came to her. She looked over to Byakuya, "If you find anything that only required heating I can go outside and start a small fire to warm it up." Rukia said. Byakuya was about to say something but Rukia continued, "I used to do that all the time when I was in Inuzuri. I mainly heated up fish that I had caught, and I learned a lot about cooking when I was in the World of the Living too."

Byakuya didn't show it, but as soon as the word 'Inuzuri' had left her mouth a sad feeling washed over him. He had always had food ready for him whenever needed or wanted it during the time he was growing up, but Rukia had had to steal, fight, or do what ever it took just to scrounge up just enough food to make it through the night.

He stopped what he was doing before making his way over to Rukia, who was still seated on the floor in front of the lower cabinets. Rukia looked up at him with a confused expression when Byakuya sat down beside her, but before she could question him he had suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Byakuya?" Rukia questioned after a short moment of silence had passed.

Rukia felt his hold on her tighten first and after a another short moment she felt him lean his head back before resting his forehead against her own.

"I'm sorry for my sudden actions, Rukia." Byakuya said quietly.

"It's alright, but what's wrong?"

Byakuya waited a moment, he didn't know if he should reply or not because he knew this wasn't like him and that he would usually never act like this. Byakuya's thoughts were interrupted when he heard Rukia speak again.

"It's okay, you can tell me. Just like I depend on you, you can depend on me. I'm here for you and I always will be." Rukia told him, looking him in the eyes as she spoke and never breaking eye contact.

Byakuya's eyes widened slightly. He had never even considered or thought about having someone to depend on or be there for him. Hisana had always been to sick and frail and he never wanted to talk to her about his problems when she already had enough on her shoulders to worry about. So he always had just kept any of his feelings or problems bottled up inside of him.

Byakuya then tilted his head and softly kissed Rukia on the lips, which she responded to by kissing him back. When he pulled away he rested his head on her shoulder. Rukia could feel his breath on her neck when Byakuya started speaking.

"It just bothers me when you speak of your days in Rukongai. I know it's in the distant past and I know I can't do anything to change it, but just hearing what it took for you to just survive out there...and what could have happened if you had continued to live in such a dangerous district just either saddens me or scares the living hell out of me. Even though I never express those feelings, Rukia; it doesn't mean I don't feel them every time I think about it."

Rukia's eyes had widened when he was explaining what was bothering him, _'I never knew he felt so deeply about that...' _She thought before lifting her arms out of his hold to wrap them around his neck to return his embrace and hopefully comfort him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know it effected you that much. I promise to try to stop mentioning it." Rukia said softly.

She felt Byakuya give a single nod against her neck before loosening his hold to lean back and look at her.

Byakuya gave her a small smile before speaking, "We should get back to searching for some food."

"Okay." Rukia said with a smile, after giving a small laugh.

–

"_We can eat this." Rukia said, showing Byakuya two bowls of cold soup she had just poured. _

"_But-" Byakuya tried to speak, but Rukia continued._

"_It's okay to eat when it's cold. I already have before a long time ago. I had gotten a little hungry one night and decided to go get a snack. So I came in here and found this kind of soup and it tasted fine." Rukia explained._

"_Alright..." Byakuya said, giving up after a short moment; realizing it was probably all they would find anyway._

–

Byakuya smirked as he remembered how Rukia had gotten him to eat the bowl of cold soup he now held in his hands. Rukia and him were in his room seated on the floor at the foot of the bed.

"What are you smiling about?" Rukia asked after looking over to him and noticing his smirk.

Byakuya looked down at Rukia, who was seated closely beside him, "I just can't you talked me into eating cold soup."

Rukia just laughed before setting her empty bowl on the floor beside her before she leaned over against Byakuya and rested her head on his shoulder, a smile still gracing her expression.

Byakuya's smile softened when he felt Rukia against him. He leaned over to place his empty bowl on top of hers before picking them up and using shun po to go put them away. He was back at Rukia's side in the blink of an eye.

Rukia felt him place something in her lap. When she looked down she discovered a white sleeping robe. She looked up at him when he started to speak.

"You can change in the bathroom and then we'll go to bed." He told her, smiling softly.

Rukia nodded before standing up and taking the robe with her to change. After the door had clicked shut Byakuya quickly changed into his own sleeping attire, which was simply some soft, black sleeping pants, before walking over to stand next to the bathroom door; waiting on Rukia to come out.

Once Rukia emerged from the bathroom, dressed in her white sleeping robe Byakuya had given her, she gasped when felt herself being lifted off the ground. Byakuya had picked her up into his arms, bridal style, and Rukia blushed when she felt herself press against Byakuya's bare chest. She looked up at him when he started walking towards bed. He had carefully shut the door to the bathroom with his foot and was now on his way towards the bed.

Byakuya overturned the covers before gently placing Rukia on the right side. He then walked over to the other side of the bed and laid down next to her, pulling her closely to him. Rukia snuggled up to him as much as she could, making Byakuya smile, after Byakuya had pulled her beside him. She rested her head comfortably on his chest before closing her eyes.

Byakuya rested his head gently on top of Rukia's and shut his eyes before making his embrace around her more secure. "Goodnight and sleep well, Rukia." Byakuya whispered softly and smiled when he heard Rukia echo his words back. He waited until he knew for a fact that Rukia was asleep before he quietly whispered to her sleeping form.

"I love you, Rukia."

–

Senbonzakura, now wearing a new mask, walked down the corridors of Muramasa's hideout. On his way to the lower, cave-like portion of the area. When he entered the cavern he was greeted by Ruriiro Kujaku and Houzimaru. Suzumebachi was just flying around, not minding Senbonzakura's entrance, Kazeshini was just relaxing as he leaned against the caves wall while Wabisuke stood a few feet away, minding his own business.

Senbonzakura ignored Ruriiro Kujaku and Houzukimaru's greeting, taking note that there were only a few zanpakutou present. Hyourinmaru, Tobiume, Haineko, and Gegetsuburi were gone. He silently guessed that they had either been captured or were just out fooling around. He noted Muramasa was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Muramasa?" He asked in his usual tone.

"He's still out." Kazeshini said with a laugh.

Senbonzakura nodded and was about to head out to the balcony that he was usually on, but Muramasa then entered the cave, he looked unwell but didn't express it. His eyes shifted as he observed his surroundings.

"You're all the only ones here." Muramasa noted before sighing, "We need to quicken the pace of our take over. In a days time we will strike an attack on the shinigami. Katen Kyokotsu, Sogyo no Kotowari, and Minazuki are still holding the Yamamoto and Ryujin Jakka captive."

"Should we prepare for the attack since some of the shinigami have regained their zanpakutou?" Ruriiro Kujaku asked.

"It would be wise to do so, but don't wear yourselves out." Muramasa replied. "Remember, we will attack in a days time."

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Sorry I'm a little late with this one. At least I got it out this weekend though! That's better than having to wait another week for it. Hopefully this chapter didn't suck too badly. I'm not sure how I feel about how it turned out. I actually typed most of it up a few hours ago up until now. So my brain's kinda jumbled, lol.**

**Hopefully you all enjoyed this chapter though. Btw, hint. Hint. The rating will be changing very soon. **

**Remember Read and Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	11. Chapter 11

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Eleven~**

Rukia awoke to the early morning light and couldn't help but smile tiredly when she felt Byakuya 's arms wrapped protectively around her and his warm breath breathing slowly against her neck. She cuddled closer to him and her smile only grew when she felt his arms reflexively tighten their hold as he slept.

Shortly after that, Rukia felt Byakuya begin to wake up. He moved slightly before he leaned himself up on his arm, his other arm still firmly around Rukia's waist. He stared at her tiredly for a few seconds before giving a small smile.

"Good morning." Rukia greeted, returning his smile.

Byakuya leaned down slightly to kiss Rukia softly on the lips, "Good morning." He replied, before leaning back down to nuzzle her face.

Rukia giggled slightly, "So, when should we report in to the Fourth Division?" She asked.

"We'll leave in an hour since it's still early."

"Okay."

–

Thirty minutes later, Byakuya and Rukia had gotten dressed so they would be ready to leave. They had decided to take a walk in the gardens to pass time, luckily the gardens weren't destroyed in any of the zanpakutou's attacks.

Rukia smiled as Byakuya and her walked beside each other, arm in arm. She couldn't believe how much had changed in only a few days. At times she couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if this Zanpakutou Rebellion had never happened, but she always quickly shook it off; she liked this, what was happening now, too much.

Byakuya felt Rukia's hold on his arm tighten. He looked down to see if she was alright and was relieved to see that she had a smile on her face.

"What are you so happy about?" Byakuya asked, smiling.

It took Rukia a moment to respond, not knowing he had spoken. She looked up at him, "What was that? Oh," Rukia remembered his question, giving a small laugh, "nothing important. I'm just thinking about how great things have turned out. I'm happy that things have ended up for the better between us and I wouldn't prefer it any other way."

"I agree, though...I would have changed one thing."

"What would that be?"

"I wouldn't of let you get hurt."

Rukia felt slightly surprised at his words, but then she let her surprised expression fade, allowing her smile to reappear. _'I should have known. It's in his nature to be protective over me and how he hates to see me injured.'_

She felt Byakuya make a move to turn, leading to the same tree where he had promised he would never leave her. They sat down under the tree. Byakuya leaned back against I, while he placed or rather pulled Rukia into his lap. His left arm was draped over her lap while his right gripped her waist. Byakuya smiled when he felt Rukia's breath on his neck before he leaned his head forward to rest on top of hers as he closed his eyes in contentment.

After a moment Byakuya felt the Rukia had fallen asleep. He decided to carefully pick her up and let her rest while he carried her, on their way to the Fourth Division.

When Byakuya had exited the manor, Sode no Shirayuki appeared and was now walking a few steps behind him. She looked at Rukia, who was still sleeping comfortably in Byakuya's arms, and couldn't help but smile at the couple.

"She really cares for you, more than she let's herself show." Sode no Shirayuki said.

Byakuya glanced at Sode no Shirayuki before looking down at Rukia, unable to help a small smile from appearing.

"I know." He replied calmly.

Sode no Shirayuki then looked up at the sky, her expression concerned.

"Senbonzakura is alright." Byakuya said, noticing Sode no Shirayuki's concern.

Byakuya looked down at Rukia when he felt her grip his robes a little tighter, but she hadn't woken up. Byakuya couldn't help but smile once more, as whenever he was around Rukia he tended to do that often.

"One of Muramasa's power is to allow the spirits of the other zanpakutou to follow their inner desires, correct?" Byakuya asked.

"Yes." Sode no Shirayuki said with a nod.

"Inner desires..." Byakuya muttered under his breath as if he were in deep thought, looking up at the sky as he walked.

Sode no Shirayuki noticed this and had heard what Byakuya had said. He was still looking up at the sky when she started to speak.

"If you don't mind me asking, what's your inner desire?" She asked.

"My inner desire..." Byakuya said looking down with a small smile at Rukia, "My inner desire is to protect my pride."

Rukia had heard Sode no Shirayuki and Byakuya speaking. She had woken up when Byakuya had spoken of Muramasa's power. She only opened her eyes after Byakuya had answered Sode no Shirayuki's last question. The first thing she saw was him smiling down at her, making her smile as well.

–

Byakuya put Rukia down on her feet once they had reached the Fourth Division. The headed towards Unohana's office after they had gone inside. When they entered they saw that Senbonzakura was already there, standing off to the side. He wasn't wearing his mask like the last time Rukia, Byakuya, and Sode no Shirayuki had seen him.

Byakuya and Rukia sat down where they had in the previous meeting after being greeted by Ichigo, Renji and the other taichos while Sode no Shirayuki walked over to stand by Senbonzakura.

"Now that everyone is here we can start. Senbonzakura has news to share." Unohana said with a smile before turning to Senbonzakura, to let him know he could speak.

"Muramasa plans to attack the zanpakutou in a days time. The other zanpakutou have been training some to strengthen themselves, but they were told not to over exert themselves." Senbonzakura explained.

"It's going to be that soon?" Ukitake asked. The news shocked them all, and they couldn't help but be concerned over how little time they had.

"It will be. It's because Muramasa isn't getting any better and he doesn't want to waste anymore valuable time." Senbozakura said with a nod.

Shunsui leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin, "It's not giving us much time to plan a counter attack..."

"Yes, but we have to at least try." Ukitake said with a nod, agreeing with Shunsui.

"We should inform the remaining Taichos and Fukutaichos as soon as possible." Unohana said.

"Maybe we should inform the other shinigami as well." Ukitake added.

Unohana turned to Ichigo and Renji, "You should train for awhile, but don't over do yourselves."

"Understood, Unohana-taicho" Renji replied with a nod.

Unohana turned to Rukia and Byakuya then, "The same goes for the both of you. Train and then get plenty of rest. Just leave the informing job to us." Unohana said, giving a smile.

Byakuya nodded before he turned to look at Rukia, "We should get going."

Rukia nodded before standing up to follow Byakuya out of the building. Sode no Shirayuki looked at Senbonzakura, who was looking back at her. Their eyes stayed locked to one another's for a short moment before Sode no Shirayuki left to catch up with Rukia and Byakuya.

"I'm going to go back to Muramasa and the others before they start to suspect anything." Senbonzakura stated, pulling out his mask and putting it back on. The moment he had finished speaking, he was gone, already on his way back.

"We should get going to, Renji." Ichigo said as he stood.

"Yeah, we'll train at the Sixth Division since it's more than likely Kuchiki-taicho and Rukia will be training at the Kuchiki Manor." Renji replied, getting up from his seat to leave.

"Yeah," Ichigo said before smirking, "you just want to get back to the division to make sure Zabimaru hasn't destroyed anything since you left them there."

Ichigo then used shun po to leave, Renji followed close behind.

–

When Byakuya and Rukia had returned to the mansion they decided to go to the training grounds in the manor. To prepare themselves for the battle ahead they decided to spar against one another to train. Sode no Shirayuki sat off to the side to watch them.

Rukia tried to strike, but Byakuya easily blocked it. Rukia knew he was holding back a good bit of his strength, but using just enough to help her strengthen herself up for the fights to come. She made another move to strike but Byakuya easily dodged her attack before using shun po to get behind her, readying an attack of his own. Rukia sensed this and quickly used her own shun po to dodge, she knew her senses had improved as well. She was full aware he was holding back, because a long time ago she wouldn't of noticed him behind her until the last minute and probably wouldn't of been able to dodge it.

Byakuya smiled, he could tell Rukia was improving and was happy she was able to so quickly. He guessed it was all the training she had done after returning from Hueco Mundo.

–

Byakuya and Rukia trained until it was almost time for the sun to start setting, once they were finished they headed back inside the mansion to clean themselves up. Byakuya let Rukia shower before him, once she was finished she came out dressed in a dark blue kimono with light floral designs and green stripes with a yellow-orange, lengthy obi because she and Byakuya had planned to go out walking in the gardens after they had eaten since they still had time to spare before it was time to go to bed.

She gave Byakuya a soft smile when she saw him smile at her only seconds before. Byakuya then walked into the bathroom to get his own shower. Rukia took a seat on the bed and patiently waited for Byakuya. After about ten minutes or so passed he came out, dressed in a deep green kimono and his hair still slightly damp. He gained a small smile when he saw Rukia before walking over to her. Rukia stood up when he was by her and took his arm when he offered it before they walked out of his room to go get their food before they would go out for their walk.

–

Byakuya and Rukia had settled on another bowl of the soup they had had the night before. Like before, they ate in Byakuya's room and finished early.

Byakuya returned to his room after taking the empty bowls back to the kitchen. Rukia was seated on the bed waiting on him to get back. He went over and sat beside her, giving her a warm smile.

"Do you think everything is going to be alright?" Rukia asked suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Byakuya asked in his usual tone.

"The battle against the zanpakutou. We never really had that much time to prepare since their attack was basically decided on a whim. What if we...I mean-"

Byakuya had leaned in and silenced her with a soft kiss before leaning back slightly. He placed his hand softly on her cheek before leaning back in to rest his forehead against hers.

"We'll be fine, trust me." Byakuya said soothingly, trying to reassure her. "The zanpakutou haven't had much time to train either, so everything is basically the same as it's been."

"But-"

Byakuya leaned in once more and kissed her, only this kiss was deeper. Rukia responded by kissing him back and slowly wrapping her arms around his neck as she felt his arms wrap around her waist. She felt Byakuya lightly lick her lips, asking for entry which she happily obliged to; allowing him to deepen the kiss.

Rukia felt herself leaning back against the pillows and Byakuya's full weight press on top of her, but she didn't stop anything from going further, she loved the feeling she was getting from this and honestly never wanted it to end.

Byakuya moved from her lips and started to a trail of soft kisses down her neck, causing a slight moan to slip from Rukia's lips which made him hungry for more. The small noises she made was like music to Byakuya's ears. He nipped at her neck a little, making Rukia squeak in pleasure as she tried to hold back her soft moans.

When Byakuya moved lower, he stopped himself to look at Rukia, "If you want me to stop, tell me. I don't know if I'll be able to stop mysel-"

"Don't." Rukia breathlessly told him, moving her hands down to cup his face to pull him into another passionate kiss.

Byakuya broke the kiss shortly after to go back to his work on her neck. Rukia moaned when his trail of kisses went lower and lower. He let his hands start exploring her body when his lips reached her below her collar bone. Rukia couldn't stop her self from letting another moan escape when she felt Byakuya cup her left breast through the fabric of her kimono.

Byakuya leaned up slightly to untie Rukia's obi, quickly throwing it to the side before he went to undo her kimono. When he tore it away Rukia couldn't stop herself from blushing and shivering a little when she felt the cool air hit her skin, arousing her nipples into a hardened state. Byakuya couldn't help but let a smile appear, she was more beautiful than he had imagined. He leaned down to kiss her again before moving to the side of her face where he whispered to her that everything was alright and how beautiful he thought she was.

Rukia gripped at Byakuya's hair when she felt his tongue slide across her right breast as he caressed the other one tenderly with his hand. Byakuya soon moved onto her other breast to give it equal attention, though it was becoming hard not to quicken the pace of things as Rukia's small moans and whimpers were driving him over the edge; making him want more.

He let his hand travel downward, causing Rukia to gasp when he reached her most private area. She moaned when Byakuya let one of his fingers slide between her wet folds. He kissed Rukia on the lips to muffle her pleasured scream when his finger entered her. Byakuya felt Rukia grow wetter when he inserted a second finger and started to move them inside of her, causing her to call out his name breathlessly.

Rukia hand moved to grip Byakuya's shoulder as she moaned against his mouth. She had never before felt anything like this. Rukia unconsciously started to thrust her hips to meet Byakuya's fingers as his lips moved to her neck again, sucking and nipping on her soft flesh. She started to moan out his name again when he moved down to her breasts once more, giving small licks before taking the full mound into his mouth. Byakuya didn't know how much longer he could hold out, he could sense Rukia nearing her climax as he felt her tighten around his fingers and before long Rukia let out a scream as she tightened around him once more before her juices spilled out onto Byakuya's hand.

She leaned her head up to rest it on Byakuya's shoulder, her hands still gripping his shoulder and his hair as she took in a few breaths of air. It was hard for Byakuya, but he waited patiently on her and in a few second he felt her start to plant soft kisses on his neck; she even gave a few small licks and nips causing him to let out a moan or two at the feel of her lips to his skin. Rukia's hand soon moved down to push down Byakuya's kimono as he moved his head to kiss her softly on the lips. Rukia ran her hand down Byakuya's bare chest after she had pushed his kimono down half way. Byakuya shivered in pleasure at the feel of her nails on him, '_She has no idea what she does to me.'_

When Rukia's hands reached the sash that held Byakuya's kimono together Byakuya moved his hands and helped her remove it before throwing it off to the side like he had with Rukia's obi. Rukia's eyes widened slightly at Byakuya's size, she suddenly wondered how he would possibly fit. She looked up at him to see that he was staring down at her. He slowly leaned down to where his face was beside her own, their cheeks gently touching.

"Rukia, I...I don't want to hurt you." Byakuya whispered in her ear.

Rukia gave him a small smile before tilting her head to softly whisper in his own ear, "It's alright, I trust you."

Byakuya looked at her and smiled, "This will hurt, but I promise I'll try to be gentle."

Rukia gave a small nod, letting him know it was alright before he moved to position himself between her legs. Rukia winced when he had entered her half way, she felt him stop but she gave him a small nod, letting him know to keep going. Byakuya then pushed in and entered her fully, causing Rukia to cry out from the pain. She was tight, Byakuya new it would hurt her, and that was one thing he didn't like, especially since he was the cause of the pain.

He waited for Rukia to adjust once he was inside, when she relaxed she wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck before pulling him down into a passionate kiss. Byakuya started to kiss her softly on her face and neck as he started to move within her. Rukia hissed when he first started to move, from both pain and pleasure. She tilted her head so Byakuya could deepen the kisses he was giving her as she gave a pleasured moan from his movements. Rukia arched her back when she felt Byakuya's hand cup her breast and quicken his thrusts into her.

Byakuya felt Rukia's nails scraping against his back, he was sure they would leave marks but he didn't care. He just wanted to make this experience something great for Rukia. Rukia moaned loudly when his mouth found her breasts again as he sucked and nipped at her left nipple.

Rukia was soon meeting Byakuya with each thrust, causing both of them to let out sounds of pleasure that they didn't even try to hold back. After awhile Byakuya felt Rukia tightening around his member, knowing she would soon reach her climax he moved to kiss her her softly and then fully on her lips, which she gladly responded to by kissing him back. Rukia then let out a loud moan, shouting Byakuya's name as she felt herself climax; Byakuya came soon after, giving a grunt as he spilled his seed into her. They collapsed onto one another then, breathing deeply to catch their breath. Byakuya moved to the side, making Rukia gasp slightly when he pulled out, to lie on Rukia's right.

Byakuya pulled Rukia to him before burying his face into her hair, allowing a smile to appear on his face when he felt Rukia snuggling up against him. Byakuya's embrace tightened before he gently started to speak,

"I love you, Rukia" He said breathlessly, tired from their previous actions.

Rukia smiled, feeling as if she would fall asleep in a matter of seconds she responded in a tired whisper, "I love you too,...Byakuya."

Rukia had fallen asleep, it was late and Byakuya knew they would have to get up early tomorrow. His smile had only grown when he heard Rukia tell him that she loved him. He knew she did, but just hearing it made his heart soar.

"Goodnight, Rukia." He said before closing his eyes and falling into his own state of slumber.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Well there it was...MY FIRST EVER LEMON!**

**Hopefully it didn't suck too back. Sorry It took so long to get this chapter posted as well, I hope you all enjoyed it. **

**I'll get the next chapter up on time, I promise! I really felt bad about missing last week. I couldn't update because I was doing a lot of school work and I couldn't update any earlier because I haven't been home. The 18th was my birthday so I wasn't working on my chapter much then. Please forgive me! **

**Remember to Read and Review!**

**Just remember, NO FLAMING!**


	12. Chapter 12

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Twelve~**

Rukia suddenly woke up after hearing a noise in the hallway that sounded like something had broken. She looked over to Byakuya, who was still sound asleep, before deciding to go check it out. Silently, she slipped out of the bed, as troublesome as it was because the lower half of her body felt very sore, and dressed herself in her white sleeping robes that had been sitting on a nearby chair. Rukia noticed that it was still late at night as she got dressed, she guessed that she hadn't been asleep for long. She looked over to Byakuya once more before she quietly left the room to go investigate to see what had made the noise that had awoken her.

When Rukia was a few feet down the dark hallway she gave a quiet laugh when she saw it was just a potted plant that had been tipped over. Her laugh then came to a sudden stop when she felt someone's reiatsu. A shadowy figure stood behind her and the moment Rukia turned to face the intruder and even get a word from her mouth; everything went black.

–

When it was morning, Byakuya began to wake up. Something was different though, he was feeling slightly uncomfortable. He looked down to look at Rukia but discovered her to be gone, his eyes widened; all of his tiredness from before disappearing immediately. He quickly sat up and looked around, becoming all the more worried every time he failed to see her and his worry only became more severe and fear took over him when he attempted to sense her reiatsu, but it only confirmed she wasn't there.

Byakuya quickly shot out of bed and swiftly dressed himself before he used shun po to search the entire mansion just in case.

–

Sode no Shirayuki awoke, sensing Byakuya's reiatsu fluctuating wildly as if something was extremely wrong. She decided after a short moment to get up to go find out what was wrong.

When she reached Byakuya's location, which was his office that was located a few doors down from his room, she was surprised to see that he was on his hands and knees on the ground with his head hung low. It obvious that something was very wrong, otherwise Byakuya wouldn't be acting like this. It wasn't like him to be so distressed, even Sode no Shirayuki knew that. Then it hit her,

_'Where is Rukia?'_

Sode no Shirayuki was about to ask, but before she could she heard something at the doorway behind her. She turned around to see Senbonzakura, he looked exhausted and he was injured. Blood dripped down from his forehead, his mask gone and there were slash marks on his armored shoulders and on the fabric that covered his torso, which also had a small bit of blood on them. Sode no Shirayuki was facing him, staring at him in concern. Senbonzakura was barely able to stand, and he couldn't any longer. He tried to speak but cringed in pain as his legs gave away.

"Senbonzakura!" Sode no Shirayuki called in concern, catching him in her arms before he hit the ground.

She carefully turned him so he was cradled in her arms. She looked between him and Byakuya, who hadn't moved from his position.

"What is going on?" She asked in a distressed tone.

It was then that she noticed Byakuya was muttering something under his breath over and over again to himself. She guessed he had been doing that the whole time, probably not even realizing Senbonzakura and her were even there. She tried to understand what he was saying and it took a moment before she realized that the almost silent whispered words he coming from him were, _'she's gone.' _

"Muramasa found out....that I was...giving infor-information to the-the shinigami..." Senbonzakura explained the weakly before giving a painful cough. "After they had attacked me they agreed that," he coughed again, "that the wielder sh-should be punished as we-well....so Muramasa came and to-took what...what was most dear to Byak...Byakuya...he kid-kidnapped...Rukia." Senobonzakura said, finishing his explanation.

It was at that moment Byakuya's eyes shot open before he slowly stood up, his fists clenched tightly. He then spoke, but it was only a little above a whisper and neither Sode no Shirayuki or Senbonzakura understood him.

"Wh-what was that?" Senobnzakura asked.

"Where's their hideout?" Byakuya asked, anger clear in his tone.

Sode no Shirayuki and Senbonzakura's eyes widened at his question before Senbonzakura cringed in pain. Senbonzakura's expression turned serious but then turned slightly apologetic.

"Th-that's probably w-what Muramasa wants....it's probably a tra-trap...." Senbonzakura said, shaking his head slowly.

"Are you sure?" Sode no Shirayuki asked.

"It's what I'd expect....of someone like him." Senbonzakura replied before he cringed once more.

Sode no Shirayuki's eyes widened a little more, "Please rest, you're injuries need to heal."

Senbonzakura tried to look over to Byakuya before he turned back to look up at Sode no Shirayuki, "I'm sorry....I'm sorry I wasn't...able to st-stop Muramasa from...from kidnapping Rukia...." His eyes then closed as he fell unconscious, his head tilting to the side; resting against Sode no Shirayuki's side.

Sode no Shirayuki then looked up at Byakuya, who was no looked down at Senbonzakura and herself.

"Where is their hideout?" He asked once more.

Sode no Shirayuki hesitated before answering, "I'll take you there but on one condition, I'm going too. The Fourth Division can watch after Senbonzakura until we've returned."

Byakuya waited a moment before giving a single nod in response. He then walked towards the door that lead out of his office.

"I'll be waiting near the Sixth Division's destroyed area. We'll meet there after you're done making sure Senbonzakura is properly taken care of." Byakuya said when he reached the door before he disappeared in a flash of his shun po.

–

Byakuya stood on the edge of a partly destroyed building. He was looking up at the sky, not caring if his expression gave away his worry or not. He just wanted to find Rukia and bring her back home, he knew she was defenseless right now without her sword. The only thing she had that could cause some good damage was her kido, but there were still too many free zanpakutou for her to take the chance, it would be suicide.

Byakuya swore silently to himself he would find her, take her away from the current danger, and keep her safe. He had a feeling that Senbonzakura was right and that Muramasa knew that he was on his way, but he didn't care if he was playing into a trap or not; Rukia and her safety were all that mattered to him at the moment.

Sode no Shirayuki appeared almost an hour later.

"I didn't say anything to anyone at the Fourth Division. I only told them that he had been attacked and nothing more." She explained.

Byakuya gave a nod, "Which way?" He asked in his usual emotionless tone.

"We should head north." Sode no Shirayuki answered.

That being said, Byakuya disappeared again with shun po and Sode no Shirayuki followed behind him.

–

In a private room in the Fourth Division, Unohana busily healed Senobonzakura, who was lying on the bed; still unconscious. Ukitake, Ichigo, and Renji stood off to the side, watching Unohana heal him.

"What exactly did Sode no Shirayuki say before she left anyway?" Ichigo asked.

"She only stated that Senbonzakura had been attacked and then she left before any of us could ask any questions." Ukitake answered.

"That's strange..." Renji said.

"Yes, something must be going on that we're being kept in the dark about." Ukitake said, looking over to Senbonzakura.

"How long should it be before he's up and walking again?" Renji asked Unohana.

Unohana shook her head, "I'm not sure. He was injured pretty badly. It couldn't of possibly been a single opponent that did this."

Renji and Ichigo's eyes widened before Ichigo spoke up, "You mean he was ganged up on?"

"That's the only logical answer I can come up with..." Unohana answered.

"I wonder why Sode no Shirayuki was in such a rush though..." Renji wondered out loud, "Maybe we should ask Kuchiki-taicho and Rukia."

"That would probably be best. Maybe they know something." Ukitake said, looking over to Renji.

"Alright, Ichigo and I will be back when we're done talking with them."

–

Ichigo and Renji arrived at the Kuchiki Manor about an hour after leaving the Fourth Division. They didn't both calling out or knocking, they simply just walked inside.

"We should check out Byakuya's room since that's where they were last time." Ichigo said as they walked.

"Yeah." Renji agreed before they both used shun po to get to Byakuya's room.

Once they had reached Byakuya's room they found it empty. Though it looked as if a small tornado had come through. The covers of the bed had been almost thrown completely off of as if Byakuya had been in a rush. There were clothes scattered about the floor as well, they noticed Byakuya and Rukia's kimonos.

"I wonder why Rukia's clothes are in here?" Renji wondered allowed as he walked over to Rukia's kimono.

They also noticed Byakuya's sleeping pants and Rukia's shihakusho and sword placed neatly on a chair. Renji looked around the room aimlessly before he heard Ichigo respond to Renji's earlier question.

"Maybe Rukia's been staying in here..." Ichigo said, but he then quickly dismissed what he had just said.

"We'll worry about that later, right now our job is to find Kuchiki-taicho and Rukia."

"Yeah."

They both then left Byakuya's room to search for them in the other parts of the mansion.

–

Rukia sat in a far off corner in the Zanpakutou's hideout, still dressed in her white sleeping robes which were now a little dusty from the dirt. She sat with her knees pulled up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them and her forehead rested on her knees, hiding her face. She didn't need to worry about a zanpakutou attacking her, after she had regained consciousness Muramasa had explained to her why she was here.

Haineko looked over to Rukia and sighed, "Why does the depressing mood killer of a shinigami have to be down here where we all hang out?"

Tobiume looked over to Rukia before looking back at Haineko, "I'm not sure, there are plenty of other chambers to lock her in, but Muramasa just brought her here..."

Haineko hissed slightly, she wasn't happy about Rukia being there around them and the other Zanpakutou thought the same, but Muramasa had wanted her there and that was that.

Rukia was exhausted, but she couldn't fall asleep no matter how hard she tried. She didn't care what the zanpakutou were saying about her, especially when they purposely talked loud enough for her to hear, like Haineko just had. She hated being around them as much as they hated being around her. Rukia overheard them talking about their planned attack as well. She knew Byakuya was probably on his way to come and get her though.

"Byakuya..." She whispered sadly and slightly worried as her grip on her robes tightened.

–

Byakuya and Sode no Shirayuki were still quickly making their way to the Zanpakutou's hideout. Sode no Shirayuki looked over at Byakuya. He hadn't said a word since before they had left. She could tell though; he was angry and clearly worried about Rukia.

"The hideout is just ahead." Sode no Shirayuki told Byakuya.

Byakuya didn't reply though, instead his speed increased. He only had a single thought running through his head at the time,

"_I'm on my way, Rukia." _

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's chapter twelve! Sorry I couldn't get it up sooner, I had to go to the emergency room on Thursday and didn't get a chance to work on it or my ByaRuki oneshot. I'm going to try to have my oneshot out tomorrow after I wake up. **

**I'm alright though, ****I had some really bad nausea, stomach pains and cramps for the past 3 days. I wasn't able to eat or sleep and I just started to throw up**** Thursday morning****. My mom had been refusing to take me to the ER even though I was keeled over all night in pain so I finally got her to call my grandma to take me. I went around 7 ****am ****after I started throwing up.  
They took my blood, made me drink two giant bottles of contrast for a cat scan and then gave me the cat scan...then they diagnosed me...**

**With a simple stomach bug**

**So I'm good, I'm feeling a lot better now and I haven't even had to take any medicine. **

**Thank you all for the reviews on the last chapter! Cookies for you guys! I was really nervous about uploading the chapter since it was my first lemon, but I'm happy most of you enjoyed it. :)  
**

**Hope you liked the chapter**

**Read and Review!**

**Just remember, NO FLAMING!**


	13. Chapter 13

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Thirteen~**

Rukia sat alone in one of the corners of the Zanpakutou's hideout, listening to the Zanpakutou's conversation they they were having at the lone wooden table in the hideout. They were talking about the upcoming attack on the Seireitei and that they would depart shortly.

_'I hope everyone will be prepared back in the Seireitei...' _Rukia thought to herself.

Rukia partly wondered what they would do with her, she doubted they would leave her here in the hideout alone; it would've destroyed the whole point of kidnapping her in the first place.

Muramasa looked over to Rukia, who he had caught peeking in at the conversation. When Rukia noticed she had been caught she quickly hid her face again. Muramasa then turned to Haineko,

"Haineko, I would like you to watch over our captive while we're gone." He told her in a serious tone.

Haineko's eyes widened in anger, "Why do I have to!?" She asked, demanding to know why she had to keep watch over their prisoner.

Muramasa held his hand up to silence her, "We need someone to look after her and that's that. Nothing more is to be said."

Haineko had to clench her fist and grit her teeth in order to prevent herself from speaking any further.

"We should get moving." Muramasa said, turning to the other Zanpakutou.

The other zanpakutou agreed before all of them, except Rukia and Haineko, disappeared without a trace. Already on their way to the Seireitei.

Haineko looked over to Rukia with an angered expression but Rukia wasn't paying attention, her face still hidden. Haineko scowled and turned to face Rukia.

"Stop being such a downer! If you're not going to do that, go somewhere else in here and get out of my sight! You're ruining my good looks and mood with your depressing attitude." Haineko angrily said in a loud voice.

Rukia didn't respond, she just continued to stay in the same position she had been since she got there. Haineko became angrier and walked over to Rukia. She squatted down in front of Rukia before grabbing a fistful of her hair, forcing Rukia to look at her.

"You know, you're really starting to piss me off." Haineko hissed in the same angry tone she had been using since Rukia had been brought to their hideout.

Rukia's expression stayed emotionless, much like how Byakuya's always was. Rukia waited a moment before finally responding to Haineko.

"If I make you so angry why don't you just leave me be and entertain yourself with some catnip or something." Rukia said in an emotionless tone to match her expression.

Haineko's eyes widened in shock but then narrowed in anger before she let go of Rukia's hair and slapped her hard across the face, leaving three claw marks that immediately started to bleed. The slap had been hard enough to knock Rukia to the ground; making her head slam hard against the rocky ground, knocking her unconscious.

Haineko stood and scowled, "You needed to of been hit even harder than that..." She hissed before turning her heel and walking off to a high rock to sit on. Once she was seated she looked down at Rukia, who was still lying on the ground.

"Just stay there like that. When Muramasa gets back he'll-" Haineko's words were cut off by an explosion that came from one of the walls of the cave. Dust and debris scattered everywhere, making Haineko cough some and shut her eyes to prevent them from getting sand in them.

Once the dust cleared, Haineko looked in the direction of the explosion. She saw Sode no Shirayuki, her sword drawn, and Byakuya; who had been the one to make the explosion using his kido. Before Haineko had time to say anything, Sode no Shirayuki jumped to attack her while Byakuya quickly made his way to Rukia.

When Byakuya landed beside Rukia and carefully sat her up, cradling her in his arms, Byakuya became even more concerned when he saw her wounds. He let his fingers gently glide across the claw marks on her left cheek before shaking his head and hooking his free arm under Rukia's knees as he stood. He looked up to Sode no Shirayuki to see her clashing blades with Haineko before using shun po to get out of the cave.

–

Byakuya brought Rukia to a small grassy area surrounded by trees. He gently sat himself down against one of trees; keeping Rukia cradled in his arms. He placed the palm of his right hand over her cheek before using a healing spell to heal it. Luckily, it wasn't hard to heal; the wound on her head was slightly more difficult to heal, but is wasn't out of his range.

One thing Byakuya was sure of though; the Seireitei wasn't safe enough to bring her back yet. He situated Rukia so she would be comfortable when she woke up. Byakuya rested his head against her own and tightened his hold on her as he patiently awaited on her to awaken. He was extremely grateful to just have her back, even though she was injured they weren't too serious which was another thing he was thankful for.

–

Haineko lept at Sode no Shirayuki, but Sode no Shirayuki easily dodged the attack. Haineko then used her shikai ability, sending waves of deadly ash directly at Sode no Shirayuki.

"Some no mai, Tsukishiro." Sode no Shirayuki said, using her first dance to freeze the ash before causing the ice-trapped-ash to shatter along with the ice.

Haineko gasped when she lost sight of Sode no Shirayuki, but Sode no Shirayuki reappeared behind Haineko before using her ice breath to blow Haineko against a hard rock that was nearby. Haineko wiped the ice from her face, but when she looked up to glare at Sode no Shirayuki, she wasn't there.

"Damn..." Haineko muttered before disappearing, on her way to Muramasa and the other Zanpakutou.

–

"...Byakuya?" Rukia muttered tiredly. She had just regained consciousness and the first thing she had seen when she woke up had been Byakuya, who was staring down at her in concern.

When Byakuya had heard Rukia say his name he let out a breath he had been holding before bending down slightly and hugged her. Rukia hugged him back but not as tightly as he was currently doing because she was still a little drowsy. Byakuya pulled out of the embrace a moment later before gently wiping away a strand of hair that was in Rukia's face.

"What happened after I was knocked out?" Rukia asked.

Byakuya shook his head, "Sode no Shirayuki and I arrived shortly after you had fallen unconscious."

Rukia didn't say anything in response, instead she simply cuddled up closer to him; resting her forehead against his neck.

"I'm glad you're alright." Byakuya told her as he gently stroked her hair.

Rukia tightened her grip on Byakuya's shihakusho, "Thanks, I'm glad you're okay too."

"You don't need to thank me, I'll come to your aid whenever you need me and nothing will ever change that." Byakuya told her softly, giving a small smile as he spoke.

Rukia smiled before moving her arms up to rest around his neck before she lifted herself to face him. She then leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips, which he happily responded to. They pulled away a short moment later, both of them sporting a soft smile that directed at one another. Byakuya leaned in again to nuzzle her face, causing Rukia to giggle slightly.

They stayed like that until Sode no Shirayuki had found them, which had taken her about ten minutes since she and Byakuya had never mentioned a specific spot for the three of them to meet up at. Sode no Shirayuki smiled when she saw Rukia was okay and obviously happy again. Byakuya stood up, with Rukia still being held protectively in his arms, when Sode no Shirayuki approached them.

"What should we do next?" Sode no Shirayuki asked.

Byakuya couldn't answer at first because the only thing that had been running through his mind was to save Rukia and get her to safety. He thought for a moment before saying, "We'll sneak back into the Seireitei to the mansion so Rukia can get her sword and change into some more appropriate clothes."

Rukia blushed slightly, but it quickly faded away. Byakuya looked down at Rukia, who was already looking up at him. "Our last promise still stands. Stay with me at all times and under no circumstances are you to leave me." Byakuya told her in a serious, but gentle tone.

Rukia gave a single nod, "I haven't forgotten and I will."

"We should get going." Byakuya said seriously.

Sode no Shirayuki nodded in agreement before Byakuya disappeared in a flash using his shunpo to get back to the Seireitei.

–

Ichigo and Renji had just finished explaining to Ukitake and Unohana the news about how they couldn't find Byakuya or Rukia and that they were gone. Ukitake and Unohana's eyes were widened in shock.

"Are you sure they're gone, there were no hints or anything to where they might have gone to?" Ukitake asked.

"We're sure. There weren't any hints or anything. It just looked as if Kuchiki-taicho had been in a rush or something. His room was pretty unorganized and stuff since the last time we had been in there." Renji explained, "We even went by the Sixth Division after we had checked the mansion just to make sure, but there wasn't anything..."

After a moment a loud explosion was heard and Ichigo, Renji, Ukitake, and Unohana all quickly went outside. They all immediately felt strong amounts of rieatsu, much like their own, now in the Seireitei. They swiftly came to the conclusion that it was the zanpakutou.

"They're early!" Renji exclaimed, right after Zabimaru had come outside to see what was going on.

Ichigo frowned angrily before drawing his zanpakutou, "We can't do anything about it now except fight."

Renji nodded before he, Ichigo, and Zabimaru disappeared; on their way to help anyone that needed it.

–

Back at the Kuchiki Manor in Byakuya's room, Rukia had just finished changing into her shihakusho. They already knew the zanpakutou were there. Sode no Shirayuki was keeping a lookout for any of the zanpakutou that might try to attack them. Byakuya got up from his seated position on the edge of the bed and walked over to Rukia to help her quickly tie her sash because she was having a little trouble.

"Thanks." Rukia said, smiling at him. Byakuya gave her a soft smile before planting a gentle kiss on her forehead as a reply.

"We're going after Muramasa, I won't let him get way with his actions," Byakuya stated, and by actions it was obvious to Rukia and Sode no Shirayuki he was mainly referring to Rukia's kidnapping. "can you help find him?" Byakuya asked Sode no Shirayuki in a serious tone.

Sode no Shirayuki nodded, "I can."

Byakuya gave a single nod before walking behind Rukia and picked her up in his arms, bridal style. He secured his grip on her before Rukia looked up in question.

"It will be best if we get to Muramasa as quickly as possible." Byakuya said, noticing Rukia's confused expression.

Rukia then understood and with no reply, she wrapped her arms securely around his neck before he and Sode no Shirayuki disappeared once more, on their way to Muramasa.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Sorry I couldn't update last week, I really felt bad about it. I've been swamped with schoolwork...mainly math. Plus I also got sick once again. There was no emergency room visit though, I've had my fill of that, lol.**

**Well, that's all I can really think of to say other than that I hoped you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm happy and very thankful for all the reviews!  
**

**Remember Read and Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!!**


	14. Chapter 14

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Fourteen~**

Sode no Shirayuki directed Byakuya, who still had Rukia in his arms, to Muramasa; sensing his reiatsu as they jumped from roof to roof of the many buildings they had to go by to get to him as they discovered that Muramasa's location was Sokyoku Hill.

Byakuya's eyes widened slightly before he quickly jumped back as something slashed out at them, causing dust to scatter in front of them, when they reached the stairway that led up to the top of the hill. Byakuya, Rukia, and Sode no Shirayuki looked ahead to see Kazeshini standing in their way, laughing maniacally.

Byakuya glared at the wild zanpakutou before he made a move to put Rukia down on her feet. Before he could a voice quickly shouted from afar,

"Keep going!" The voice shouted loudly.

Byakuya, Rukia, Sode no Shirayuki, and Kazeshini looked up in surprise to see Senbonzakura, without his mask, standing on one of the rooftops of a nearby building.

"Senbonzakura!" Sode no Shirayuki exclaimed, unable to help from letting a smile appear on her face.

Byakuya gave a single nod before he used shun po to get passed Kazeshini and make his way up the stairway. Sode no Shirayuki gazed at Senbonzakura for a moment before giving a nod and following after Byakuya and Rukia.

Kazeshini scowled as Senbonzakura jumped in, quickly drawing his blade, to attack.

–

Rukia looked up to Byakuya as they all quickly made their way up the stairway.

_'I'm weighing him down...if he didn't have me to worry about he'd be able to get up to the top of the hill faster...'_ Rukia thought silently. She let out an almost inaudible sigh before saying, "I'm sorry. I'm just weighing you do-"

Byakuya looked down at her and cut her off as he ran, "There's nothing to apologize for, Rukia..." He told her softly.

Rukia didn't say anything after that, she just gave a nod and rested her head back against his chest.

–

Senbonzakura made a swift move to attack Kazeshini with his shikai, but Kazeshini dodged the attack in the last minute; though his arm ended up getting grazed slightly by a few of the blades.

Kazeshini scowled before disappearing from Senbonzakura's view momentarily before reappearing behind him, ready to strike. Senbonzakura quickly countered the attack before sending his shikai back out to lash back at Kazeshini, attempting to attack him from all directions. Kazeshini then started to revolve himself around and around, turning himself into a small tornado to blow back the petal-like blades.

Senbonzakura wanted to end this fight and he wanted to end it quickly. He knew the best way to do that would be to use bankai, which was exactly what he chose to do. He called back the blades to form back into a sword.

Kazeshini laughed, "You givin' up?" He asked before laughing again.

"Far from it..." Senbonzakura answered before pointing his sword downward and letting it slip from his hand, "Bankai..."

Kazeshini's eyes widened as the swords on each side of Senbonzakura appeared. Senbonzakura's expression changed and his eyes now held a glare as he mentally commanded the blades to follow Kazeshini, who was having difficulty dodging them.

"Gokei." Senbonzakura commanded, causing the blades to trap Kazeshini within the deadly sphere.

As the final attack from Gokei Senbonzakura Kageyoshi erupted, Kazeshini could be heard yelling out in agony. The fight had finished, Senbonzakura the winner.

–

Byakuya, Rukia, and Sode no Shirayuki were now deep in the forest that needed to be walked through in order to get to the clearing of Sokyoku Hill. They were near the end, but stopped to take a short rest; hiding their reiatsu so Muramasa wouldn't be able to notice them.

Byakuya sat Rukia down on the ground behind one of the large trees. Rukia looked up at him, confusion showing on her expression. Byakuya stood closely beside her, looking in the direction of where the exit to the main cliff was, even though the cliff could not yet be seen.

"Byakuya-" Rukia, was about to ask why he had sat her down, but could only get out his name before he leaned down on his knees and kissed her on the lips. She didn't have a chance to reply before he pulled away and looked into her eyes.

"...Bya-" Rukia tried to ask once more, but Byakuya cut her off.

"Rukia..." Byakuya said softly, his voice telling her that he had more to say but he was hesitant; as if he were nervous about what he wanted to say. He took one of her hands in his own before continuing. "Rukia...once this rebellion is all over with, when everything returns to normal..." Byakuya paused momentarily before continuing, "I know it may be difficult but I feel for certain we can get passed it." he looked down before looking back into Rukia's eyes, "What I'm trying to ask you, Rukia is," his grip on her hands tightened, "would you marry me?"

Rukia's eyes widened in surprise before softening, a smile appearing on her face. She lifted her free hand and softly placed it on Byakuya's cheek before she started speaking.

"After all that's happened, how can I possibly say no." She told him softly, unable to help but tear up slightly.

Byakuya felt as if a giant weight had been lifted from his shoulders and he immediately felt a smile forming on his face. He leaned in and kissed Rukia tenderly on the lips, which this time she had time to reply to. When he pulled away he rested his forehead against hers, their noses touching and smiles still evident on their faces.

Sode no Shirayuki, who stood a few feet away in front of them, smiled softly after hearing Byakuya and Rukia's exchange.

Byakuya pulled away from his position; his expression serious. He then placed his hand softly on Rukia's cheek before he started speaking,

"Please stay where you are and do not come out until the fight is over."

Rukia's eyes widened, "W-what?" She stuttered.

Byakuya's expression held a hint of sadness, seeing Rukia upset now when she was just so happy moments ago made him feel unhappy as well. "I want you to please stay here, Rukia...stay hidden. I don't want to risk you getting seriously injured."

Rukia was about to retort but Byakuya interrupted her, already knowing what she was going to say. He leaned in to softly rest his head on her shoulder.

"I don't want to lose you..." Byakuya told her, "I promise I'll be careful, but you're my first priority and I'm not going to risk losing you. You mean too much to me..."

Rukia stopped trying to argue, she knew how he felt and it would only be right to accept his wishes. She wrapped her arms around Byakuya's neck and embraced him.

"I'll stay." Rukia softly told him.

"Thank you..." Byakuya replied, letting a relieved smile show on his face.

A short moment passed Byakuya pulled out of the embrace and leaned in to kiss her. After their kiss he stood up and turned to Sode no Shirayuki, "Stay as close to Rukia as possible, but do it without giving away her whereabouts." He told her in his usual monotone.

Sode no Shirayuki nodded, letting him know she would. Byakuya then started to walk forward but Rukia reached out and took his left hand as if to stop him. When Byakuya turned slightly to see what was wrong, when they made eye contact, Rukia reluctantly let go. Her expression holding worry and sadness. Byakuya knew this situation was upsetting her and it pained him to see her that way.

"I'll be back...I promise, Rukia." He told her softly, still looking down at her.

Before he started walking again he saw Rukia give a slow, single nod, her face hidden by her hair and downcast gaze.

Byakuya walked deeper into the forest farther ahead of Sode no Shirayuki, who had followed and was now deciding on a place to go and stand guard. They were about fifty feet away from the forest's exit and it was in view. He looked behind him at her before walking closer to the exit. He stopped to take a few small breaths, preparing himself for the battle he knew was going to happen and concentrating on coming up with a strategy. Once he had decided on what he would do, he looked back at Sode no Shirayuki to see her standing against a tree. He then sensed for Rukia's reiatsu to make sure she was alright and safe before taking one last deep breath before walking a few more steps ahead, looking ahead from behind a tree he saw Muramasa standing at the edge of the Sokyoku Hill's cliff.

Without another word or thought, Byakuya disappeared from behind the tree with a flash of his shun po.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**There's the fourteenth chapter, I hope you all liked it. Like the last one it's not a long chapter, but the next one should be....sort of, lol. Sorry the fight scene between Kazeshini and Senbonzakura wasn't that long. I couldn't really think of anyway to extend it from what I had written out.  
**

**I'll try to have the next chapter up on Saturday...the reason I couldn't get this one up is because I was still sick and I was having some really bad stomach pains at the time and couldn't get much typed. I was also dragged to the store by my mom around one in the morning and I didn't get back home until four in the morning so I didn't get much sleep. **

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

**  
Remember Read and Review!**

**Just remember, NO FLAMING!**


	15. Chapter 15

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Fifteen~**

Muramasa stood on the ledge of Sokyoku Hill, overlooking the explosions and destruction that was happening in the Seireitei down below.

"Hadō number thirty-one, Shakkahō." A deep voice said from out of nowhere before a red blast was seen coming straight at Muramasa.

Muramasa jumped to dodge the moment he heard Byakuya fire the blast. The attack had hit him though, not directly but it had hit his left arm. When he landed he started to cough violently, giving Byakuya the perfect chance to attack. Byakuya used shun po to get right in front of Muramasa before he started speaking,

"Hadō number four, Byakurai." He said quickly.

The explosion caused by Byakuya's second attack caused dirt and dust to scatter about, keeping Byakuya hidden when he moved to attack Muramasa directly. At the last moment, Muramasa sensed Byakuya before he was able to strike him with his sword; forming his own blade, Muramasa swiftly lifted it to block Byakuya's attack.

Byakuya's frowned when Muramasa's blade had blocked his own, even though he had predicted that to happen in the first place. Byakuya did notice though that Muramasa was only using his right arm, meaning his kido must have had injured his left arm enough to put it out of use.

Byakuya used senka to get behind Muramasa and slash, but Muramasa didn't fall for it. He disappeared by using his own speed to dodge another one of Byakuya's attacks. Suddenly, Muramasa appeared to Byakuya's right and brought his sword down to attack him. Byakuya quickly blocked it with his own sword at the last second.

They clashed blades for a moment before Muramasa jumped back, dodging an attack from Byakuya he would've had difficulty blocking due to another coughing fit. To Byakuya, all Muramasa's coughing fit was was just another opening. He quickly appeared directly in front of Muramasa and raised his sword above him, ready to strike and cut down Muramasa.

Muramasa looked up at Byakuya; glaring, "Pathetic." He said weakly.

Byakuya's eyes narrowed, glaring back, he attempted to strike down. He couldn't though, he couldn't move at all due to Muramasa's powers. He wasn't surprised because he had already been informed of Muramasa's powers during one of Unohana's meetings at the Fourth could move his hands slightly, using that to his advantage he cast another kido.

"Hadō number thirty-three, Sōkatsui ." He said calmly. Letting the blast go straight upwards, breaking through the invisible ties holding him in place.

Muramasa had enough time to move though and dodged Byakuya's sword when he swung it down. He tried attacking from behind but his sword only clashed with Byakuya's again. Byakuya could tell Muramasa was tiring out though, he hadn't had another violent coughing fit yet but he was having trouble trying not to double over when one was about to come. Byakuya was becoming frustrated though, as Muramasa continued to dodge his attacks.

Muramasa continued to strike at Byakuya, who either countered or dodged and then tried to attack back himself. Muramasa jumped back, disappearing somewhere by using his speed. Byakuya stopped, his shifting from left to right; looking for Muramasa before he tried to sense out for his reiatsu.

Byakuya could tell immediately though that Muramasa was masking his presence. It was then when he saw shot of icicles shoot from the forest that he realized what Muramasa was doing. His eyes widened before quickly making his way into the forest with his shun po.

–

Sode no Shirayuki stood alert, her sword drawn and held out in front of her. She looked from left to right, not sure if the presence she had felt was still there or not.

"What happened?" Byakuya asked as he appeared a few feet in front of Sode no Shirayuki.

Sode no Shirayuki shook her head, "I felt a nearby presence but after I attacked I lost track of it. What about Muramasa?"

"Muramasa disappeared, but he's somewhere here nearby..." Byakuya said, looking around as he tried to sense Muramasa's reiatsu.

It was then that they both suddenly felt Rukia's reiatsu flare up as if she were fighting. Byakuya's eyes widened before he used shun po to get to Rukia as quickly as he possibly could. Sode no Shirayuki's eyes had widened too before she followed Byakuya to Rukia's location.

–

Rukia blocked Muramasa's sword with her own as he had just appeared suddenly and attacked. Rukia feared the worst had happened no matter how much mind and conscience told her it wasn't true. There was just no way she would believe Muramasa had defeated Byakuya.

Muramasa held an emotionless expression but she could tell he looked tired, almost ready to give out. She and Muramasa exchanged clashes a few more times before Rukia jumped back.

"Hadō number thirty-three, Sōkatsui ." she yelled as she held out her hand, hoping her kido would hit him.

As soon as Rukia had used her kido she felt herself fall to the ground, her arms forced by her sides; unable to move at all. Muramasa was using his powers again but unlike Byakuya, Rukia couldn't move enough to break the hold. Muramasa stood in front of her, holding his blade up; ready to strike her down.

Rukia closed her eyes and instinctively tensed up as Muramasa swung down, she awaited the attack that would end her life. It never came though. Rukia opened her eyes and they widened when she saw Senbonzakura in front of her, using his sword to block Muramasa's.

"Senbonzakura..." Muramasa said but before he could say anything more, Byakuya and Sode no Shirayuki emerged from the trees as they had just arrived on the scene.

"Byakuya!" Rukia called out, Byakuya's eyes widened when he saw her before he quickly ran over to her side.

"Senbonzakura!?" Sode no Shirayuki exclaimed, shocked to see Senbonzakura.

Byakuya used his kido to free Rukia from Muramasa's hold so he could carefully pull her out of the way and get her back on her feet.

"Are you alright?" He asked Rukia once he had gotten her on her feet.

Rukia nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine." She answered.

Once Byakuya had made sure Rukia was alright he turned to Muramasa. His glare holding deadly killing intent. Anger would be a clear understatement to describe Byakuya's rage. He was furious Muramasa had dared to even think of harming Rukia. Senbonzakura moved back when Byakuya moved to approach Muramasa.

"Your fight is with me and no one else." Byakuya said, his anger showing clearly in his tone. He held his sword out in front of him, pointing it at Muramasa.

"Alright, Shinigami..." Muramasa replied, eyes narrowing in response.

Byakuya gave a nod before turning his gaze to Sode no Shirayuki and Senbonzakura, "Keep Rukia safe." He said before both he and Muramasa disappeared.

Sode no Shirayuki turned to Senbonzakura, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Senbonzakura replied, "What about you?"

"I'm alright." She answered, giving a small him a small smile.

"Good." Senobonzakura said, letting a smile of his own appear.

They looked over to Rukia to see her staring off in the direction Byakuya and Muramasa had went, worry plain on her expression. Senbonzakura looked off in the direction Rukia was looking before turning back to her.

"Byakuya will be fine." Senbonzakura said, trying to ease her worry.

Rukia looked back to him and smiled a little, "I know...but I just can't help but worry about him."

"I know how you feel." Sode no Shirayuki said, her smile growing as she looked up a Senbonzakura, who was looking down at her with his own that had grown a little.

–

Byakuya and Muramasa clashed swords, they were now back on the clearing of Sokyoku Hill. Byakuya disappeared from Muramasa's view before suddenly reappearing behind him. Muramasa anticipated this and quickly counted Byakuya when he swung down his sword.

Muramasa then moved to attack Byakuya with a few quick strikes, he was successfully able to knick Byakuya on his left arm with one of the strikes. Muramasa tried to strike again, but Byakuya used shun po once more and disappeared from view. This time, Muramasa wasn't able to locate Byakuya until it was too late.

"Hadō number thirty-three, Sōkatsui ." Byakuya said, firing his attack and successfully hitting Muramasa.

Muramasa jumped back, getting out of the smoke of the explosion the blast had caused. He was dripping blood from his head and was covered in dust. He started to cough again, the cause of this fit being the the smoke from the blast. Byakuya could tell Muramasa couldn't take much more of this. He used shun po once more to get behind Muramasa to strike him, which Muramasa tried to block as he coughed but it only resulted in him losing his sword; Byakuya's blade knocking it from his grip.

"Bakudō number sixty-one,Rikujōkōrō." Byakuya said when Muramasa had scowled and tried to get away. Byakuya approached Muramasa and once he was in front of him, Byakuya lifted his sword and quickly dealt the final blow.

Byakuya glanced at the ground after a moment had passed to where Muramasa, now only a broken sword, now lay. It was then that Ichigo and Renji appeared, but they stopped, stunned, when they saw the broken blade on the ground. They looked up at Byakuya who was simply looking at them with an impassive expression.

Byakuya didn't have time to stay anything though, before he could do anything he felt something run into him. He turned his head and looked down in front of him, unable to stop a smile from appearing on his face and not caring if Ichigo and Renji were there or not when he saw Rukia clinging to him. Her head was buried in his chest and her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist. He looked up in the direction Rukia had come from to see Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki emerge from the forest.

Without looking he could tell Ichigo and Renji were shocked at Rukia's sudden affection towards him. He didn't care in the least though, their relationship would be revealed soon anyway since a marriage couldn't exactly be an easily kept secret.

Rukia didn't seem to care either as he felt her tighten her grip. Byakuya's smile didn't fade as he lifted his arms and wrapped them around her, ignoring the pain on his left arm, to embrace her back.

"You're not hurt are you, Byakuya?" Rukia asked, looking up at him with a soft smile on her face and watery eyes.

Byakuya's gaze shifted slightly to his arm before quickly shifting it back to Rukia. Rukia noticed his quick glance and frowned when she saw the injury and lifted her hands to carefully tear whatever fabric was in the way before using her kido to heal it. She looked up at him when she was done to see him looking down at her with a soft smile, making her smile in return.

Ichigo and Renji looked at each other in slight confusion before Ichigo took a step forward to go near them. He didn't get far though, for as soon as he moved Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki appeared in front of them; blocking them from going any further.

Sode no Shirayuki smiled before turning her head to Ichigo and Renji, "Leave them be."

Byakuya and Rukia were still looking up at one another, still smiling softly and in each others arms.

"Are you alright?" Byakuya asked, lifting his right hand up to rest it on Rukia's cheek.

Rukia nodded, "I'm alright."

Byakuya smiled a little more before leaning his head down to rest on her forehead, "Good." he said before nuzzling her, "I love you."

Rukia's smile grew even wider at Byakuya's words, "I love you too." She said before Byakuya leaned in, kissing her softly.

_To be continued...

* * *

_

**Happy New Year everyone! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Only one more to go after this and then I'm going to continue _Baby Daddy_. I'm also going to have the first chapter of my new Byakuya x Rukia fanfiction out on the 31st of this month! Though that fanfic won't be updated regularly until I complete _Baby Daddy_.**

**Sorry I couldn't update last week, Christmas and parties kept me from really getting anything done. **

**Remember, Read and Review!**

**Just Remember, NO FLAMING!**


	16. Chapter 16

_~The Blossom of Lost Desire~_

_**By**_ - _ByaRukifan_

_**Timeline:**_Zanpakutou Filler Arc (Episodes 230-)

_**Pairing(s):**_ Byakuya/Rukia, Senbonzakura/Sode no Shirayuki

* * *

**~Chapter Sixteen~**

The Zanpakutou Rebellion ended soon after Muramasa's defeat and the Zanpakutou's returned to their wielders. Yamamoto and Ryujin Jakka had been freed from their imprisoned state and returned to the 's focus shifted from their battles to fixing and repairing whatever had been destroyed by Muramasa and the other Zanpakutou.

Things had also been going well for Byakuya and Rukia, they were finally able to relax after the fighting had ceased. The first thing they had decided to do after Muramasa's demise was to report back to the Fourth Division, hand-in-hand, to get whatever injuries remained treated and to make sure everything was alright.

"Everything is fine." Unohana said with a smile on her face as Byakuya, Rukia, and her sat inside her office.

Byakuya and Rukia were relieved to hear that, before they could say anything though;, Ukitake walked in.

"Glad to hear that you two are alright." Ukitake said happily.

Rukia nodded, "We feel the same way." She said, giving a soft smile.

"You two have become fairly close during this rebellion," Ukitake said, "Sorry if I'm jumping to any conclusions but..."

"You're assumption would be correct, Ukitake." Byakuya said, answering Ukitake's question before he could answer.

Ukitake and Unohana's response was a happy smile, which slightly surprised both Byakuya and Rukia. They had expected to be bombarded with questions before anything else.

"I believe a congratulations is in order then," Unohana said after a short moment of silence, "It's a good thing that you've both found happiness with each other."

Rukia couldn't help but smile at Unohana's words, "Thank you, Unohana-taicho."

"It's nothing, it's nice to see that you two are happy together." Ukitake said.

"How about Renji and Ichigo? I know that they saw us together." Rukia asked, her smile faltering slightly.

"They're fine, just recovering from injuries that they received during their own fights. I'm sure they're happy you're happy."

"I hope so." Rukia said, letting her smile reappear. It was then that she felt Byakuya take her hand and squeeze it slightly, making her smile grow even bigger before giving a slight almost inaudible giggle.

–

Two weeks passed and the Kuchiki Mansion was now fully repaired, which by then Byakuya had decided it was time to inform the elders about Rukia and him. Unohana, Ukitake, Ichigo, and Renji were still the only ones that knew of their relationship and it both Byakuya and Ruki had to admit, it was becoming troublesome to keep it secret. Which is why Byakuya felt slightly relieved when it was time for the elders to come for the meeting he had arranged.

"I hope everything turns out okay..." Rukia said as she and Byakuya walked hand-in-hand down one of the mansions halls, on their way to the room where a couple of the elders were waiting.

"I hope so too, but I'm sure everything will be." Byakuya replied, giving Rukia's hand a soft squeeze to reassure her as they entered the room where the elders were awaiting them.

"I've called you here to discuss a matter of great importance." Byakuya said as he walked into the room, with Rukia following behind him, and sat down in the seat facing the two elders. "Let me speak and explain everything first before you speak or jump to any conclusions."

"Alright, Byakuya. Please explain." The male elder, Yoshinori, said.

The two elders sat straight up in their seats and waited on Byakuya to start speaking.

"Many things have changed since the recent rebellion. One thing specifically is something I feel you all need to know about." Byakuya said, waiting until one of the elders nodded before he continued, "Rukia and I grew closer, much closer. Certain events led to others. I protected her and she watched and protected me as well as she could. We both went through a lot during that time and our bonds only became stronger for one another; and before Muramasa's defeat I asked her to become my wife."

Byakuya finished talking then and looked down at Rukia, who surprisingly, was looking up at him with a soft smile instead of gazing at the ground and nervously toying with her hands as she usually did when the elders were around.

The elders waited a moment before they turned slightly to talk with one another, whispering quietly so Byakuya and Rukia were unable to hear what they were talking about. It was then that Rukia started to get nervous and Byakuya could tell because Rukia had clutched his hand under the table they were sitting at. _'What if I get kicked out..?'_ Rukia thought nervously, she knew Byakuya would never allow that and even if he didn't have control in that decision she knew he'd end up going with her.

The elders turned back to them about six minutes later, when they turned towards them Byakuya felt Rukia clutch his hand even tighter than she already was. He didn't show it, but he was nervous too. He didn't want anything bad happening Rukia. He knew that one of the risks of having this meeting was to throw Rukia out of the family where he couldn't keep watch over her. He would never allow that to happen though, he wouldn't let anything bad happen to her; no matter what.

"This may raise eyebrows and cause arguments. There's also the chance you will both be constantly talked down to or spoken about behind your backs, you're both well aware of that we're sure..." The female elder, Noriko, said in an almost emotionless but questioning tone.

Rukia wasn't liking where they were going with this, she could feel her heart sink with every word they spoke.

"But..." Noriko added, making Rukia look up. "Byakuya, you shown the both of us over the years that you will not back down from what you say or intend to do, which has made us come the decision that we will allow the marriage between the two of you."

Rukia felt herself smile immediately, she couldn't' help it. She felt instant relief and happiness was over her and also Byakuya's hand tighten around her own, letting her know he was just as relieved and happy as she was.

"We'll hold the ceremony in a few days time and you should both start preparing." Yoshinori stated.

"We will, there's nothing to worry about." Byakuya assured, giving the elders a nod.

With that, the elders stood, bid them farewell, and left. Rukia was so happy that once she knew for a fact the elders were gone she couldn't help but suddenly wrap her arms around Byakuya's neck in a tight embrace. Byakuya smiled as well and returned her embrace before turning Rukia's head to kiss her softly on the lips.

–

True to their words, the marriage ceremony was to be held two days after the meeting. Though the one free day Byakuya and Rukia had before the wedding Byakuya had been forced to take Rukia to the Fourth Division when she had gotten sick that morning, and wouldn't hear any protests or arguments from Rukia about not needing to go.

They now sat on one of the couches in the Fourth Division, near Unohana's office. Unohana had already examined Rukia and they were now waiting on Unohana to come and tell them if anything was wrong.

After about ten minutes of waiting, Unohana emerged from the examination room with a smile on her face, which slightly confused the both of them.

"Is anything wrong?" Byakuya asked, wanting to know immediately if Rukia was sick or not.

Unohana shook her head, "Everything is fine. They'll both be okay."

Byakuya and Rukia's expression turned to a mixture of confusion and slight surprise at Unohana's statement.

"What do you mean by, 'They'll both?'" Rukia asked in confusion.

Unohana's smile only grew before saying, "I meant that I think congratulations are in order." That told them everything they needed to know.

–

Now, they day after their wedding. Byakuya and Rukia were out in the Kuchiki Gardens. They were lying on the ground's fresh green grass. Rukia was dressed in a dark blue kimono, much like the last one she had been wearing, with a floral design; the difference between the two being the colors on the one she was currently wearing were more vibrant. The obi on this one being a light pink with a small, red ribbon tied directly in the middle and Byakuya wore a blue kimono with no special design on it that was just meant for comfort. Rukia's head was rested on Byakuya's chest while her arm was draped over his waist. Byakuya, who was lying to Rukia's right, had his right arm behind his head for support while his left arm was around Rukia's waist.

"It's a nice day." Rukia said with a soft smile.

Byakuya, who's eyes were closed, smiled, "It is."

Rukia turned over slightly so that she was now practically on top of Byakuya, looking down at him. "So, what do you think?" She asked.

"Think what?"

"The baby. Do you think it will a boy or a girl?"

Byakuya looked thoughtful for a moment before smiling back at her, "I'm not sure, but I wouldn't mind either."

"I wouldn't mind either too." Rukia said, her smile growing a little.

Byakuya carefully turned on his side, causing Rukia to be on her side too with her arms wrapped around his neck. Byakuya rested his head against hers and lowered his right hand, which he had been using as a support for his head earlier, and placed it gently on Rukia's, still flat, stomach.

–

In Senbonzakura's inner world, which Sode no Shirayuki now had the ability to cross into for a conversation from time to time, and vise versa, Senbonzakura was sitting on the ground l, lying back against a sakura tree. His inner world wasn't too fancy or anything, though Sode no Shirayuki often commented on how beautiful it was. It was a plain pure green, grassy field with sakura trees growing all around. He wasn't wearing his mask, since he had grown used to not wearing it over the passed events. He looked up at the clear blue sky with a peaceful expression.

"You look relaxed." Sode no Shirayuki said as she appeared beside him, looking down at him with a smile.

"I am." Senbonzakura said after giving her a smile.

Sode no Shirayuki took a seat next to him before giving a contented sigh.

"You look pretty peaceful yourself." Senbonzakura added.

Her smile grew, "Because I am." She replied.

"Muramasa may have done many terrible things, but he did manage to do some good..."

"Yes, it was because of this rebellion that our wielders found happiness." Sode no Shirayuki agreed, giving a small nod.

Senbonzakura smiled, "Not only did he do that," Senbonzakura added as he turned towards Sode no Shirayuki, lifting his hand to turn Sode no Shirayuki's head to face him before resting his forehead on hers, "he helped us to." He finished.

Sode no Shirayuki could only smile before Senbonzakura's lips landed softly on hers.

_The End...

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******Sorry I couldn't upload this last week. I couldn't get it up because of really bad family problems and I had a lot of school work to do. Please understand! D:**

******Rukia's kimono in this chapter was from the Fourth Clear Collection, just look it up if you want a visual. Also yeah, I know their wedding seemed a bit rushed, but those elders needed Byakuya married...that's all I can say. Lol, The elders names are something that took a little time to come up with to, here's their meanings:**

******Yoshinori (****義則********): Japanese name meaning "correct rule/law."**

******Noriko (****法子 ********or ****典子********) : Japanese name meaning "law child" or "exemplar child."**

******I thought those fit them best since they were from the Kuchiki family. I also must announce the winning title of my next ByaRuki fanfiction coming out on January 31********st********.**

******The title of my new fanfiction will be, ****__****Lay Me Under the Frozen Moon********.**

******It will be uploaded on January 31********st********, BUT It will not be regularly updated until ****__****Baby Daddy******** is completed. I have up to chapter six of ****__****Lay Me Under the Frozen Moon******** already written out. I really hope you all will read this next upcoming fic and review on it as much (or even more) than you all did on this one! I'm actually really happy with how it's turning out and stuff.**

******Please! READ AND REVIEW**

******Just Remember NO FLAMING!**


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